No problems for top dogs on the second day at Melbourne Park. The one from Switzerland, especially, had it very easy. Or that’s how he made it look. The one from Serbia, who we saw after quite a while, looked sharp and starving for wins. The way Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic won their matches suggests an increased possibility for them to meet in the semi-final (we are already excited!)

Meanwhile, an upset loomed large in women’s singles when top-seed Simona Halep trailed 2-5 in the first set against wildcard Destanee Aiava. She, however, overturned the deficit and braved an injury scare to win the match in straight sets.

This apart, we have Angelique Kerber playing as Angelique Kerber in a video game, Will Ferrell interviewing Federer, and Sascha Zverev talking about his dog.

But first...

The Big News

Federer outclasses Bedene to enter second round

Defending champion Roger Federer breezed past Aljaz Bedene in straight sets to launch his campaign. The second seed won 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 and will next play German Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round. The Swiss produced a majestic display to show why he is favourite to win his sixth Australian Open and 20th Grand Slam title at the age of 36.

A victorious return for Djokovic

Six-times champion Novak Djokovic came through his opening match at the Australian Open with flying colours, racing to a straight sets win on Tuesday.

Djokovic, seeded 14 and fighting back from an elbow injury, beat American Donald Young 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 on Margaret Court Arena.

He next plays either France’s Gael Monfils or Spanish qualifier Jaume Munar.

Sharapova beats Maria

Maria Sharapova made a successful return to Australian Open, beating Germany’s Tatjana Maria in straight sets.

The 30-year-old Russian, ranked 61, breezed past Maria 6-1, 6-4 to make the second round.
Sharapova hit 14 winners to her opponent’s two in the first set, breaking her serve thrice. The German put up a better fight in the second, hitting five winners and breaking Sharapova’s serve once. But Sharapova, with eight winners and two breaks of serve, clinched the set 6-4.

Halep survives injury scare to move to round 2

World No 1 Simona Halep fended off teenage wildcard Destanee Aiava to reach the Australian Open second round.

Halep staved off two set points before beating the 17-year-old Australian 7-6 (7-5), 6-1. Both players took medical timeouts in the second set.

Halep plays Canadian Eugenie Bouchard in the next round.

Shot of the day

(Even Federer found this one stunning.)

From the sidelines

‘Are you witch or vampire’ Ferrell quizzes Federer

The opening match against Aljaz Bedene wasn’t much of a problem for the world No 2. What he found tough on Tuesday was to rally with Will Ferrell in the post-match on-court interview.

“[It was] a surprise. I didn’t know that was going to happen,” Federer said in the post-match press conference. “That was fun. I haven’t met him a lot, to be honest. Actually I saw him when I started the match, then I totally forgot he sat there. At the end, I realized he is still actually there. That’s when he walked out onto center court.”

Kerber picks Kerber in video game

The new AO Tennis video-game was launched in collaboration with Tennis Australia. We aren’t quite convinced with the game’s graphics that much. But it’s a fully licensed game that has all the attires, brands and signature tics of the players. Angelique Kerber, after thrashing compatriot Anna-Lena Friedsam in straight sets, tried her hand at virtual tennis.

Sascha trolls Courier

Jim Courier post-match interviews are mostly fun. Here’s another one:

Quotable quotes

“My dog doesn’t even realise who I am, so, you know, nothing changes at home.”

–Alexander ‘Sascha’ Zverev’s status as the most promising next-gen star and his world ranking of 4 are irrelevant to his pet.

“I played perfect tennis. Like I never stopped – and it was really enjoyable.”

–The utterer of these words is six-time champ Novak Djokovic. Others aiming for the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup, be scared.

“I feel like sometimes some players have gotten a little bit too robot like. I wish they would let loose and be themselves.”

–Roger Federer feels some of his fellow players should be more relaxed during interviews.

“I have absolutely nothing to talk about all the political things in the tour right now.”

–Stan Wawrinka, returning from an injury layoff, wants to be focused only his game and doesn’t want to comment on the players council meeting.