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Taliqua Clancy (right) and Mariafe Artacho del Solar dropped just 13 points on their way to victory

Australians Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar were in red hot form as they qualified for the knockout stages of their home Commonwealth Games with a blistering 21-2, 21-11 win over Grenada’s Renisha Stafford and Thornia Williams.

The Olympians and Beach Volleyball Major Series regulars dropped just two points in a very one-sided first set. One of those two Grenadian points came courtesy of an Aussie service error.

However, the Caribbean duo upped their game in the second set to put Clancy and Del Solar under pressure, but the result was never in doubt as the Volleyroos made it two wins from two matches at the Gold Coast.

England’s Chris Gregory and Jake Sheaf also maintained their 100 per cent record as they beat Cypriots Dimitris Apostolou and Georgios Chrysostomou to also ensure book a place in the quarterfinals.

Gregory’s dominant performance at the net gave the English third seeds a solid platform to build on and ensured their place in the knockout stages.

The pair’s coach, Kirk Pitman, hails from New Zealand and their next match is against the All Blacks brothers Ben and Sam O’Dea. The teams will meet under the Center Court floodlights on Sunday for the right to top the pool.

For the second day running, Kiwis Ben and Sam had to fight back to earn a victory after dropping the first set. An upset looked on the cards after Mozambique’s Carlos Acacio and Delcio Soares took the opener in the first match of the afternoon session. However, the New Zealanders dug in to rescue a 19-21, 21-9, 15-11 win.

“Winning the first set would be amazing,” laughed Ben afterwards. “I’ve struggled a lot this year with an injury and in my head a lot of time I’m spending too much time thinking about things rather and focusing on technique. I need time to get comfortable and in the second and third sets the last two days I’ve forgotten about those little things and focused on playing.

“Feeling more comfortable will help. And winning the first set in the next game is a must.”

In the evening session to follow later today, Scotland’s two teams will be aiming to also book their places in the knockout phase – as will Canadian favorites Sam Pedlow and Sam Schachter. Click here for all the latest results.