Novak Djokovic and coach Andy Murray passed another Australian Open test, this time against Portuguese qualifier Jaime Faria under the roof of Rod Laver Arena.
On Monday, inspired American teenager Nishesh Basavareddy gave the 10-time champion a run around to start their first-round clash, with the 21-year-old Faria laying out another set of problems for Djokovic to sort out.
But the 37-year-old took another step towards a 25th Grand Slam title by eventually seeing off the world No.125 6-1 6-7 (7-4) 6-3 6-2.
“I think I answered well, the third, and especially the fourth set, how I finished the match,” Djokovic said.
“He was playing light tennis. Towards the end of the second and the beginning of the third, I had to weather the storm. He practically played the first two serves. I told him at the net that his future was bright.”
The difference in experience looked like a chasm in a one-sided opening set, but Djokovic loudly vented his frustration with his own game and looked exasperated towards his box at some play by Faria.
Djokovic fought back to level the second set at 5-5, then complained to the umpire that the lights had come on as the clouds descended on Melbourne Park.
They were duly sent off again, but Djokovic's spirits darkened as Faria continued to make him uncomfortable, with the Serb saving a set point at 5-6 but then losing the tiebreak.
He spoke to Murray ahead of the third set, which was disrupted by a brief rain delay and roof closure at Rod Laver Arena.
Djokovic received a timely foul before the fifth game, but in the end he broke serve to take a 4-2 lead and that turned out to be the key moment.
“I love this court, I love the competition,” Djokovic said after advancing to the third round of the Australian Open for the 17th time with his 14th ace of the match.
He will be back on court for Murray and Djokovic on Thursday and he will certainly need to raise his game if he is to go through Tomas Machac in the next round.
The Czech 26th seed survived a big test from giant American Reilly Opelka on Wednesday, winning 3-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-7 (7-5) 7-6 (7-4) 6-4.
Alcaraz aims for 'serve bot' status in Melbourne
Carlos Alcaraz hit 14 aces in the upset victory
Third seed Carlos Alcaraz dismissed Yoshihito Nishioka 6-0 6-1 6-4 in 81 minutes to advance to the third round.
Alcaraz got off to a great start and never looked back, winning the first nine games before Nishioka could even get on the board.
“Really happy with the service today,” said Alcaraz, who wrote “Am I a service bot?” on the camera lens.
“This is something I've been working on in the preseason. I struggled a bit in the first round, so I wasn't too happy with the serve.
“Yesterday I was more focused on serving practice. I spent more time just serving with Juan Carlos (Ferrero), with my team, and that's something I really want to get better at. So I'm just glad it worked well today so I hope it will be better in the next round.”
Alcaraz will next meet the Portuguese Nuno Borgeswho upset 27th seed Jordan Thompson 6-3 6-2 6-4.
The Spaniard is vying to become the youngest man in history to complete a career Grand Slam these two weeks.
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