Reflecting on what it took to get through the final stages, Evans commented: “I said to myself, enjoy it, this is what it’s about and I played much better tennis. I played good tennis again and thanks again to the crowd, you got me through.
“I know I’ve done the work, once I got some confidence, I knew the work was in the bank.
“A good friend said, if you’re ready and the doors open, you’ll walk through it and if you’re not you won’t. There’s been no truer word the past few weeks and hopefully there’s more to come.”
Harris has now made the quarter-finals at an ATP event three times, all coming on the grass – Eastbourne twice in 2024 and 2025, as well as Queen’s last year.
He’s only the third British man to reach multiple quarter-finals here in Eastbourne, joining Kyle Edmund (2018 & 2019) and Cam Norrie (2018 & 2022).
It was a straightforward win for the British No.4, needing just a single break in either set to book a place in the last eight.
“I’m definitely happy with how I played. I managed to get that first break, which against someone like Bellucci is important as he plays well when he’s got the rhythm. Played a good solid match throughout and I’m very happy. To go from lucky loser to winning a few matches, everything is a bonus.
With wins over Bellucci and Norrie so far, the road only gets tougher for Harris as he gets set to take on fourth seed Ugo Humbert in the next round.
“Another left hander, that’s three in a row. It’s good that I’m used to that now. I haven’t played or practiced with him so I’ll have to get home now and do the homework.”
Harris will play Humbert in the first match on Court 1 tomorrow, followed by Evans against Brooksby.