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Nick Kyrgios and Alex de Minaur are locked on a quarter-final collision course after four Australians advanced to the second week of Wimbledon for the first time this century.

Inspired qualifier Jason Kubler and women's flag-bearer Ajla Tomljanovic also powered into the last 16 on a truly memorable day for Australian tennis.

Not since 1999, when Pat Rafter, Mark Philippoussis, Wayne Arthurs and Jelena Dokic all made the fourth round, has Australia had so many live chances entering the business week of the championships.

"I'm super proud with Aussies being this far, still capable of doing some damage at Wimbledon. It's good to see," Kyrgios said as Philippoussis was in the opposition box on Saturday as his countryman conjured a thrilling and controversial 6-7 (2-7) 6-4 6-3 7-6 (9-7) victory over Greek fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The 2014 quarter-finalist faces unseeded American Brandon Nakashima on Monday for a spot in the last eight for the second time.

Untouchable on serve in his last two outings, Kyrgios is a hot favourite to march on.

He will play de Minaur if the Aussie No.1 lives up to his 19th seeding and beats unseeded Chilean Cristian Garin in their last-16 clash on Monday.

Such a scenario would guarantee Australia a men's semi-finalist for the first time since Lleyton Hewitt in 2005.

"We've both got a tough match ahead. He's got Garin and I have Nakashima. Nakashima won easily today in straight sets. To do that at Wimbledon on grass is not easy. He's obviously playing well. I'm not looking past that," Kyrgios said.

"But I'm obviously not surprised with de Minaur. He's been flying that flag for a while now. Super solid player. I'm not surprised to see him in the second week."

As it is, de Minaur is already in uncharted territory after seeing off British wildcard Liam Broady 6-3 6-4 7-5 to reach the last 16 at SW19 for the first time.

"More than anything, I am just relieved to be in the second week of Wimbledon. It is incredibly special," de Minaur said.

"I am trying to enjoy every minute on the grass that I can and ride this wave."

De Minaur's victory completed a daily double for Australia's two top-ranked stars after Tomljanovic eliminated 13th seed Barbora Krejecikova - the 2021 French Open champion - 2-6 6-4 6-3.

Tomljanovic has a huge opportunity to at least match her run to the quarter-finals last year when she takes on Alize Cornet next after the Frenchwoman stopped the winning streak of world No.1 Iga Swiatek at 37 matches with a shock 6-4 6-2 defeat of the Pole.

Kubler rounded out Australia's banner day with a steely 6-2 4-6 5-7 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 win over American qualifier Jack Sock in the longest match of the tournament.

The four-hour, 15-minute effort earned the 29-year-old a shot at American 11th seed Taylor Fritz - plus a career pay day of Stg 190,000 ($A340,000) - or more if he wins again on Monday.

"Kubes, hit with him at an indoor court about a week ago. I thought his level was really good," Kyrgios said.

"He obviously beat one of my best mates today. I mean, Kubes is capable of doing anything.

"You make it this far in the draw, you're feeling good, seeing the ball pretty big."

© AAP 2022

Residents in southwest Sydney have been told to evacuate as heavy rain pounding the NSW east coast triggers multiple flood warnings.

People in low-lying parts of suburbs including Camden, Wallacia, Liverpool, Georges Hall, Chipping Norton, Lansvale and Moorebank were all urged to leave for higher ground on Saturday evening, with the State Emergency Service warning they may soon be cut off by floodwaters.

Authorities warned earlier on Saturday the current bout of wet weather was only going to get worse, with more rain, powerful winds and surging seas expected.

Several flood warnings have been issued in areas south and west of Sydney, including a major alert for Douglas Park and Menangle, along the Nepean River west of Wollongong. Moderate flooding is expected downstream from Menangle on Sunday.

Moderate flooding is also expected at Liverpool and Milperra as the already-soaked Georges River catchments struggle with the incessant rainfall.

Two Australian Defence Force helicopters are on standby as areas of the state brace for more intense rainfall and possible flooding.

Three rescues have been performed since Friday, with people along parts of the Hawkesbury River being warned they face a major threat from rising waters.

NSW Emergency Minister Steph Cooke said flash flooding could occur anywhere from Newcastle to Jervis Bay.

"We are all waiting nervously to see what eventuates," she said on Saturday, adding she remained confident emergency services were prepared for what was coming.

The Bureau of Meteorology's Jane Golding said there would be a "deterioration" of weather overnight, with a risk of flash flooding and landslips.

"The rainfall rates will increase," she said.

"We'll start to see the wind increase as well. We'll see the seas whipped up and we'll see the rivers respond to the rain that's falling."

The federal government approved ADF support at the request of NSW on Friday night, with 100 troops available from Sunday onwards, Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said.

"I want to assure people that the federal government ... is 100 per cent prepared for what might lie ahead," Senator Watt said from Brisbane on Saturday.

More than 200 millimetres of rain fell south of Wollongong overnight, with six-hour totals of between 80 and 150 millimetres in Sydney and the Illawarra.

The deluge comes on the first weekend of school holidays in the state, and drivers are being urged to take extra care.

"We know floodwater is extremely dangerous, especially for drivers. If the road is flooded, turn around and find another way," Transport for NSW's Roger Weeks said.

Routes in and out of Sydney are likely to face congestion, with heavy traffic expected at known pinch-points, particularly around the airport.

Hazardous surf conditions are also expected.

The Bureau of Meteorology said the system is likely to develop on Sunday or Monday, prolonging the persistent rain into next week.

Flooding is possible for the Hunter, Central Coast, the Greater Sydney region and the South Coast from Saturday, with flood watches in place for catchments between Newcastle and Batemans Bay, including Sydney and the Illawarra.

Areas at risk include Newcastle, the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie, the Upper Coxs, Colo, Macdonald, Woronora, Patterson, Williams and Lower Hunter rivers.

Also at risk are the Upper and Lower Nepean and Hawkesbury rivers.

© AAP 2022

Australia is on the precipice of the grim milestone of 10,000 COVID-19 related deaths, with more than 7000 fatal cases reported in the last six months.

Another 54 deaths were reported on Saturday, taking the country's total toll to 9984 since the start of the pandemic.

There were 909 COVID-19 related fatalities in 2020 and 1344 in 2021.

Griffith University infectious diseases and immunology program director Nigel McMillan told AAP there would be around 14,000 COVID-19 deaths in 2022 if the trend continued.

"That will make COVID the number-two or number-three killer in the country of all causes of deaths," he said.

"Is this what success looks like for Australia in terms of its control of this virus? I would suggest no."

Prof McMillan said booster uptake was not good enough in states such as Queensland, which had the lowest rate in the country at about 63 per cent.

The state with the highest booster uptake is Western Australia, at 83 per cent, with other states and territories falling somewhere in between.

"We just seem to have become comfortable with the idea that we're stopping vaccine mandates for all sorts of places, we have loosened our mask restrictions," he said.

"So we have very little in the way of the virus at the moment in terms of (stopping) the virus spreading."

Queensland Chief Health Officer John Gerrard said he did not want a return to mask mandates, but he admitted the possibility was being discussed.

"It is something that is still being discussed but ... we would prefer not to go down that road," he told Brisbane 4BC radio on Friday.

Federal Labor minister Murray Watt said on Saturday the government had not received any health advice on mask mandates and those decisions tended to be made by state governments.

"I know that this is something that health officials have been discussing nationally," he said.

Australia is experiencing a succession of Omicron variants that have kept infection rates high, Deakin University epidemiology chair Catherine Bennett said.

However Australia ranked low in deaths per capita when compared to other countries.

"Whether we look at the total COVID-19 deaths per case, or deaths per capita, Australia sits low on the league tables, together with New Zealand, Taiwan and Japan," Prof Bennett said.

Australia's daily death rates per capita were comparable to the UK and Canada, and lower than France - countries currently in summer and reporting declines in case numbers, she said.

"It is critical that we learn more about those who are ending up in hospital or not surviving their infections, so that we can identify what needs to be done to avoid preventable deaths and bring the case fatality rate down."

LATEST 24-HOUR COVID-19 DATA:

NSW: 11,085 cases, 20 deaths, 1621 in hospital with 45 in ICU

Victoria: 6424 cases, 13 deaths, 462 in hospital with 18 in ICU

Tasmania: 1144 cases, two deaths, 47 in hospital with five in ICU

NT: 240 cases, no deaths, 17 in hospital with none in ICU

SA: 2642 cases, no deaths, 231 in hospital with eight in ICU

WA: 4878 cases, three deaths, 218 in hospital with 10 in ICU

Qld: 4976 cases, 16 deaths, 602 in hospital with 19 in ICU

ACT: 1329 cases, no deaths, 131 in hospital and 4 in ICU

© AAP 2022