MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) 鈥� first match with former rival as his coach did not start all that well, even against a 19-year-old making his Grand Slam debut.
Still, after dropping his opening set at the on Monday night to Nishesh Basavareddy, an American who left Stanford University and turned pro last month, Djokovic eventually asserted himself for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory to begin his bid for an 11th championship at Melbourne Park and a record 25th major title overall.
鈥淚鈥檓 obviously thrilled to have him in my corner,鈥� Djokovic said about Murray. 鈥淚 must say, it was a little bit of a strange experience to have him at courtside in my box. We played for over 20 years against each other at the highest level. Great to have him on the same side of the net. He gave me some great advice mid-match.鈥�
Before heading out into Rod Laver Arena, Djokovic and Murray chatted in the gym. They wrapped up the conversation with a fist bump, before Djokovic hopped on the treadmill to warm up.
During the match, apart from an extended conversation before the fourth set, there was only the occasional interaction between player and coach 鈥� a pairing between 37-year-olds born a week apart, and opponents from the age of 12, including in a series of Slam finals as pros. at the Paris Olympics in August; in November.
As a player, Murray was known for mid-match dramatics, plenty of gesticulating and muttering, often directed at his entourage. Djokovic does similar.
Djokovic showed some of his usual fire when that vital break came at the 1 1/2-hour mark. He watched the 107th-ranked Basavareddy's forehand land wide and let out a yell, clenched a fist, pointed a finger at his ear. That was the beginning of the end for Basavareddy, who started stepping gingerly between points and grabbing at his legs, and took a medical timeout before the third set.
On a busy and warm Day 2, which included nine Grand Slam champions with a combined 43 major trophies in action plus another half-dozen players with runner-up showings, No. 2 Iga Swiatek, No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 7 Jessica Pegula and among the women, and No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz among the men.
Osaka, who won two of her four major titles in Australia, defeated Caroline Garcia 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in Monday's last match at Rod Laver Arena.
Noteworthy exits came from two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, and . Ostapenko's 6-3, 7-6 (6) loss came against Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Belinda Bencic, who is ranked outside the top 400 after returning in October from maternity leave.
Also one-and-done, but not that surprisingly: , who lost to Djokovic in the and played one match the past two seasons because of injuries. Kyrgios dealt with a strained abdominal muscle in the lead-up to this week and was defeated by Jacob Fearnley 7-6 (3), 6-3, 7-6 (2).
鈥淪orry for Nick,鈥� said Fearnley, a 23-year-old from Scotland who played college tennis at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas. 鈥淚 could tell he was dealing with some stuff.鈥�
The intensity and physicality of the points against Djokovic wore on Basavareddy. Another key: Djokovic's backhand grew faster in the second set, while Basavareddy's shots off that wing slowed. And one more: Djokovic hit 23 aces.
At 3-all, a half-hour in, Basavareddy moved out front by breaking Djokovic with a backhand return winner. Soon enough, that set belonged to the youngster, who is not shy about saying the Serb is his favorite player. Basavareddy showed off some great touch with drop shots and lob winners, while hanging in there at the baseline with the consummate baseliner.
鈥淰ery complete player,鈥� Djokovic said. 鈥淗e did very pleasantly surprise me with all of his shots and his fighting spirit toward the end.鈥�
They are currently separated by exactly 100 spots in the ATP rankings. The gulf is far wider, of course, when it comes to experience and accomplishments.
This outcome left Basavareddy's career record at Grand Slam tournaments at 0-1; his tour-level debut only came in December. Djokovic, meanwhile, picked up his record-extending 378th victory at a major on Monday; he hasn't lost in the first round of one since bowing out at that stage of his first two Australian Opens in 2005 and 2006.
鈥淗e didn鈥檛 get carried away by the significance of the moment,鈥� Djokovic said about Basavareddy. 鈥淚鈥檓 sure we鈥檒l see a lot of him in the future.鈥�
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP鈥檚 tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: . More AP tennis:
Howard Fendrich, The Associated Press
