Defending champ Federer cruises into second round

ROGER FEDERER proved to be unfazed by the potential threat of Rafael Nadal's grand slam attempt as he clinically despatched Lukas Lacko in the first round of the Australian Open.
By The Newsroom
Published 17th Jan 2011, 16:15 BST
Updated 17th Jan 2011, 16:15 BST

Federer outplayed Slovakian Lacko in three comfortable sets winning 6-1 6-1 6-3 and now meets Frenchman Gilles Simon in the second round.

Simon has won his last two encounters with Federer, but the reigning champion is confident of reversing the trend.

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"The defeats won't affect my preperation, but maybe I'll just look a bit more at what worked and what has not worked against him in the past. I have to remember the good things I did as both matches were so close," said Federer.

Reflecting on his first-round match Federer added: "I thought I played great. I thought it was a good match and he didn't play too bad himself."

Third seed Novak Djokovic was equally as impressive with a 6-1 6-3 6-1 win against Marcel Gronellers.

Djokovic was rarely troubled and felt satisfied with his performance, saying: "I'm just happy with the way I played overall.

"It's my first competitive match of 2011."

Djokovic will now play Ivan Dodig who won a five-set thriller against fellow Croat Ivo Karlovic.

Related topics:Roger FedererNovak DjokovicRafael Nadal