Liam Broady made French magician Constant Lestienne disappear to reach round two at Wimbledon.
Lestienne is a part-time conjurer who performs at weddings and parties, but was unable to pull a rabbit out of the hat against British wild card Broady.
The 29-year-old from Stockport produced a spellbinding display to win 6-1 6-3 7-5.
Broady broke the world number 74 twice, either side of a brief rain delay, to race away with the first set in 27 minutes.
A pair of winners gave Broady another break and the advantage in the second.
Lestienne’s hopes vanished when Broady edged a nip-and-tuck third set to book his place in the second round in just over two hours.
Broady will face world number four Casper Ruud, probably on one of the show courts, on Wednesday.
“Look, everybody wants to play Centre Court at Wimbledon,” he said. “That’s just what it is. It’s like playing a Champions League final. It’s just what you want to do.
“I’d happily play him on Court 12 out in the bullpen, on the outside of Centre Court as well. I’m not sure we’d have enough room on those back courts. It would probably be quite good.
“I’m playing the number four in the world second round of Wimbledon. I’ll play him back up in Stockport if I have to. I don’t mind.”
