Djokovic eases through first round

Third seed Novak Djokovic overcame a spirited start from Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver to win his first-round match at the Australian Open.

The Serb had to keep a cool head to clinch the match 7-5 6-3 6-2 after he had found himself down an early break in the face of some impressive shot-making from the world number 74.

Gimeno-Traver was 4-2 ahead before he started to lose his radar and from there Djokovic's consistency from the back of the court ensured he took control of the match.

The 2008 Australian Open winner broke back to make it 4-4 and then secured his second break to clinch the first set after 49 minutes, although not before his opponent had spurned two more openings.

Gimeno-Traver clearly thought his best hope of claiming an upset win was to go for broke and, while it resulted in some memorable strokeplay, his best moments were too few and far between.

Djokovic also tightened up his serving and needed only one break of serve in the second set before racing away with the match in two hours and 20 minutes.

Fittingly, the Serb's victory was sealed when Gimeno-Traver's 47th unforced error dropped into the net.

In contrast, Djokovic made only 23 unforced errors, which ultimately proved the difference.