World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev moved ominously into the Australian Open second round with a straight-sets victory over Switzerland’s Henri Laaksonen on Tuesday.
The US Open champion won 6-1 6-4 7-3 (7-3) in a match that lasted just under two hours.
Medvedev, now the firm favourite to win the Open in the absence of Novak Djokovic,
“I tried to win the third set, I thought I’ll wait (for the tiebreaker), it managed to work out, so I’m really happy about it,” Medvedev said on court.
“I started well in Australia last year, won the ATP Cup and managed to be in the final here. I like to play here, I like hardcourts and I want to do better than I did last year.”
Medvedev dropped his opening service game against Laaksonen, but then reeled off the next six games to take the first set.
The Swiss was more competitive in the second set, but Medvedev still controlled the court.
Laaksonen forced a tiebreak in the but Medvedev’s experience shone through.
He will play Nick Kyrgios or British qualifier Liam Broady in round two.
