Taylor Fritz became the fourth seed to reach the second round of the Australian Open for the seventh straight year by routing Jenson Brooksby 6-2, 6-0, 6-3 on Tuesday.
According to match Stats, the 2024 Australian Open men's singles quarter-finalist won 83 per cent of first-serve points and clubbed 34 winners to 20.
"It's never easy playing the first match of Slams with a bit of nerves. I did a good job shaking that off early and getting it done in straights," Fritz said.
Fritz, who reached the 2024 US Open final and the title match at the Nitto ATP Finals last November, will next meet the winner of Cristian Garin and Borna Coric.
In other early action on Day 3, Holger Rune won a tough five-set battle against China's Zhang Zhizhen 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 to advance to the second round of the Australian Open.
The 21-year-old Dane overcame early nerves and absorbed a prolonged onslaught to claim the victory at Margaret Court Arena in three hours and 10 minutes.
"I think it was definitely an incredibly tough match. It got very close in the end. I'm supper happy I got through. First win of the season is always a special feeling. Hopefully I can keep raising my level," said Rune.
He will now take on former world No.6 Italian Matteo Berrettini, who earlier won through in four sets against Cameron Norrie.
Berrettini fired 32 aces as he beat Norrie 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-1, 6-3 in a battle of former Top 10 stars in the ATP Rankings. Berrettini, who reached the Australian Open semi-finals in 2022, has advanced to the second week of a major just once in the past two years (Wimbledon 2023).
In the women's singles, World No.8 Emma Navarro survived a gruelling 3-hour and 20-minute affair to defeat Peyton Stearns 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-5 on Rod Laver Arena.
She now has to regroup for a second-round showdown against Chinese lefty Wang Xiyu.
Earlier, Daria Kasatkina powered into the second round with a 6-1, 6-3 win over 58th-ranked Viktoriya Tomova on John Cain Arena.
Kasatkina is still seeking her first trip to the Round of 16 in Melbourne. The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam event where Kasatkina has a win rate below 50 percent (8-9 win-loss record), according to WTA.
Kasatkina will try to move to .500 in Melbourne when she has her first career meeting with China’s Wang Yafan in the second round.
Wang outmaneuvered Hungary's Anna Bondar 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in their first-round battle on Tuesday.
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