"Novak Djokovic has embarked on his latest quest to win a record 25th Grand Slam by easing to an ominous straight-sets victory at the Australian Open in Melbourne. The Serb dismissed Spain's Pedro Martinez 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 on Monday in two hours and is to meet Italian qualifier Francesco Maestrelli in the second round. list of 4 itemsend of list It was his 100th Australian Open victory."
"Great to be back once again, definitely my favourite court, the smiling 38-year-old said at Rod Laver Arena. Centurion is pretty nice. I always give my best on the court. History-making is a great motivation. He added: I am blessed to be still playing at this level. The former world number one raced into a 3-0 first-set lead as Serbian fans serenaded their hero. Djokovic, now ranked fourth in the world, pulled out of a warm-up event this month, saying he was not physically ready."
"His last competitive match was in early November as he tries to limit the wear and tear on his creaking body. But he showed no signs of discomfort or rustiness in moving freely around the Melbourne Park hard court to seal the first set with minimum fuss. He broke the 71st-ranked Martinez's serve early in the second set and was hardly troubled on his own serve to take a 2-0 lead."
Novak Djokovic defeated Pedro Martinez 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 to begin his Australian Open campaign and will face Italian qualifier Francesco Maestrelli in the second round. The victory was Djokovic's 100th at the Australian Open and came in about two hours. The 38-year-old showed strong movement despite limited recent match play after withdrawing from a warm-up event and last competing in early November. Djokovic raced to an early lead, broke in the second set, and extended control in the third, briefly stretching his right hamstring between games but finishing without visible issue. He aims for a record 25th major amid competition from Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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