US OPEN - Novak Djokovic Glances To Second Round

Top-seeded Novak Djokovic shrugged off his mediocre run-up to the U.S. Open by outclassing Diego Schwartzman of Argentina 6-1 6-2 6-4 to close the first day of the U.S. Open on Monday. The Wimbledon champion, who won only two matches on the North American hard courts after getting married days after his All England Club triumph last month, sprinted to victory in 97 minutes.

"I'm very pleased," Djokovic told the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd after the one-sided win. "It's never easy to start a U.S. Open smoothly."


Seven-times grand slam winner Djokovic, who won at Flushing Meadows in 2011, put on a masterful display, cracking 24 winners including seven aces against Schwartzman, who was playing his first tour-level match on the surface.

The Serbian world number one will next play Paul-Henri Mathieu of France, who was extended to five sets by Gilles Muller of Luxembourg in a match that included three tie-breaks.