The first grand slam tournament of the year is famous for
its searing heat but a blustery day with the occasional shower had the
sweatshirt replacing the T-shirt as the garment of choice among much of the 15,
000 crowd on the Rod Laver Arena.
Federer retained his trademark bandana even though the ease
of his 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Slovakian Lukas Lacko and the cool afternoon
air made the threat of sweat interfering with his vision slight.
"I thought I played great," the four-times
Australian Open champion and second seed told reporters. "Tried to play
offensive from the start and see where it takes me. It didn't work. I got back
and played a bit more risky and so forth.
"I thought it was a good match. I don't think he played
too bad himself. I saw some talent in him too and that's why I think I was really
happy I chose that tactics early on to pressure him." Federer taking risks
meant a treat for the crowd, who witnessed some brilliant shot making from the
16-times grand slam champion.
It was hard to believe that the Swiss maestro's backhand was
once considered a weakness in his game as he stroked impossible looking winners
off it from the back of the court to set up a second round meeting with
Frenchman Gilles Simon.
Rafa Nadal's quest to become the first man since 1969 to
hold all four grand slam titles simultaneously starts on Tuesday but this was
an emphatic reminder that to do it, the Spaniard is likely to have to beat
Federer at the top of his game.
Novak Djokovic is one of the few men to have broken the
Federer-Nadal grand slam duopoly in the last few years and he gave notice that
he considers himself a contender with a dominant 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 thrashing of
Spain's Marcel Granollers.
"Of course, all the credit to Rafa and Roger. They are
deservedly the two biggest favorites to win this tournament. They're the two
best players in the world," said the third seed, which won his only grand
slam title here in 2008.
"Definitely this performance gives me more confidence
and gives me enough reason to think that I can beat anyone." Venus
Williams, the women's fourth seed, was equally dominant as she made a winning
return after four months out injured with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Sara Errani of
Italy.
"It's been so long," said the 30-year-old, who is
hoping to add a first Australian Open crown to her seven grand slam titles.
"It definitely felt good today to go out there and play
pretty clean tennis." Venus is flying the family flag solo this year with
her sister Serena, the 2010 champion, still unable to play after stepping on
glass in a Munich restaurant last year.
Justine Henin, the losing finalist when Serena claimed her
fifth title here last year, survived a tricky opening encounter against
big-hitting Indian Sania Mirza to go through 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 despite 33 unforced
errors.
Two other women hoping to contend, top seed Caroline
Wozniacki and former champion Maria Sharapova, won the first two matches on center
court.
Dane Wozniacki claimed a hard-fought 6-3, 6-4 win over
Argentine Gisela Dulko, while Sharapova overcame a nervy start to beat Tamarine
Tanasugarn 6-1, 6-3 for her first Australian Open victory since she won her
last major title here in 2008.
"Last year I played first match on center (court) and,
I lost. So I was kind of like, I don't want this to happen again this
year," said Sharapova, who lost to fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko in the
first round last year.
American 18th seed Sam Querrey was the first seeded player
to fall and he took his time doing it, losing 5-7, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 8-6 to Pole
Lukasz Kubot over three hours and 20 minutes.
Russian 23rd seed Nikolay Davydenko, three-times a quarterfinalist
here, also made an early departure with a 6-3, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 defeat at the
hands of German Florian Mayer.
Andy Roddick gave a forceful reminder that he once won a
grand slam — albeit at the US Open in 2003 — with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 rout of Czech
Jan Hajek, firing down 18 aces but bemoaning the conditions.
"It was playing slow, so you had to kind of
adjust," said the American eighth seed. "It wasn't hitting and
jumping like it normally would here, and I think that's probably just the
colder conditions."
