LONDON, June 28 (UPI) -- Britain's Greg Rusedski, the 23rd seed, fired 12 aces and recorded 23 winners Friday en route to a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 rout of No. 11 Andy Roddick in the third round of the Wimbledon Championships.
A year ago, Roddick received similar treatment from hard-serving Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia. The eventual champion cut down Roddick in four sets in the third round.
"Greg played very well today," Roddick said. "I don't think I helped myself out much. I didn't do much right. But he put pressure on me and he came up with big points when he needed to."
Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia also continued the procession of seeded players marching out of Wimbledon in the first week. Belgium's Xavier Malisse, the 27th seed, upset Kafelnikov, the fifth seed, 7-6 (7-4), 7-5, 6-1.
Meanwhile, Americans Serena Williams and Jennifer Capriati, the second and third seeds in the women's draw, fought their way into the round of 16.
The departure of Roddick and Kafelnikov leaves No. 22 Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador as the highest remaining seed in the bottom half of the men's singles draw. No. 2 Marat Safin of Russia, No. 3 Andre Agassi and fellow American and No. 6 Pete Sampras all fell in the second round.
Roddick continued his struggles at Grand Slam events in 2002. The 19-year-old was forced to retire in the second round of the Australian Open due to injury and was knocked out in the opening round of the French Open.
"I've been working really hard this year, some events I've been playing pretty well. But Grand Slams, I just haven't put it together so far," Roddick said. "But there is still some tennis to be played this year. So, I'm going to get back to the drawing board and see what I can do with the rest of it."
Rusedski served superbly and, just as importantly, committed only six unforced errors as the British No. 2 put on an exhibition of dominating grasscourt tennis.
"I knew I had to come up with a good match today," Rusedski said. "I was very confident before the match. I felt I had the experience. I think Andy's a great player, but I just felt I had that little edge on experience today and that really helped."
Rusedski was buoyed by hometown support. Hungry for a British men's singles champion for the first time in 66 years, the crowd turned out with flags and vocal support for one or their two candidates.
"I thought the crowd were great, getting into it at the big moments," Rusedski said. "They wanted the victory, they wanted the win. They just want it so badly and it's great to have their support."
While Roddick was victimized by Rusedski's strong play, Kafelnikov contributed to his own demise. He committed 58 unforced errors, more than twice as many as Malisse.
"I think I wasn't that aggressive throughout the whole match," Kafelnikov said. "I tried to put pressure on him behind the first serve. But then behind the second, I wasn't able to generate enough pressure and I was giving him a chance to play his own game from the baseline."
Rusedski and Malisse will square off in the next round.
The reigning French Open women's singles champion, Williams needed a pair of tiebreaks to get past Belgium's Els Callens, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-2).
"I don't feel that I'm playing well in this tournament at all," Williams said. "I'm missing too many first serves and I'm not converting my break points."
Following her pattern of continually going for big shots, Williams registered 25 winners while committing 22 unforced errors.
Williams will be involved in an all-American affair in the fourth round against Chanda Rubin. The Eastbourne champion eliminated No. 21 Tatiana Panova of Russia, 6-4, 6-1.
Capriati also was tested in her opening set Friday, but reeled off nine of the final 11 games to record a 6-4, 6-2 win over Daja Bedanova of the Czech Republic.
"I knew she'd be a difficult opponent, so I was just ready for anything today. She played exactly like I thought she'd play, except I didn't think she'd serve and volley as much as she did," Capriati said. "I think I am playing pretty well on the grass and I'm returning and serving well."
In the round of 16, Capriati will face Eleni Daniilidou. The Greek No. 1 outdueled Miriam Oremans of The Netherlands, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
On the men's side, Mark Philippoussis of Australia and Richard Krajicek of The Netherlands will meet in the fourth round. Philippoussis fought back to beat Nicolas Kiefer of Germany, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, and former Wimbledon champion Krajicek overcame Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 6-2.
Lapentti will take on France's Arnaud Clement. Lapentti rallied past No. 15 Andrei Pavel of Romania, 3-6, 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-2. Clement dropped just two points in the opening set en route to a 6-0, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Belgium's Olivier Rochus.
No. 7 Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia, No. 9 Amelie Mauresmo of France and No. 11 Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia advanced to the round of 16 on the women's side. A two-time NCAA champion, American qualifier Laura Granville also advanced.
