World number two Novak Djokovic has begun the defence of his Australian Open title by defeating Lukas Lacko 6-3 7-6(2) 6-1 in the first round of the opening Grand Slam of 2014.
It was a positive start from the Serbian, who secured six winners and two break points to put his opponent on the backfoot for the opening set of the encounter.
Despite showing some power by scoring two aces during the opening set, Lacko relinquished his grip and succumbed to a one-set deficit.
Lacko managed to save himself from losing a break point in the second by challenging Djokovic's dominance on the court, but he was unable to create a break-point opportunity of his own.
The set was forced into a tie-break, but Djokovic displayed his trademark athleticism to take a stronghold of the contest and seal a 7-2 win to give himself just one set to win the match.
After a slight blip in the second, Djokovic took control of the court by grabbing an early break point and scoring three aces to put himself on top and see out the set for victory.
Danielle Joynson
