Australian Open: Djokovic, Ferrer move into third round

Melbourne, Jan 15 (IANS) Three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic and third-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer reached the third round of men’s singles at the Australian Open tennis here Wednesday.

Second seed Djokovic stayed on track for his fifth Australian Open title and extended his winning streak at the Melbourne Park to 23 matches with a 6-0, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Argentine Leonardo Mayer, reports Xinhua.

The second round match was also the Serb’s 26th consecutive win but Djokovic got a brief scare while serving at 3-0 in the first set when he turned over on his left ankle and tumbled to the court.

But it appeared not so serious as he took the opening set in 22 minutes, just conceding eight points.

Djokovic is attempting to win his fifth Australian Open title, the first man to achieve that feat in the Open Era.

Meanwhile, third-seeded Ferrer overcame a slow start to beat Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in the second round.

Ferrer trailed 0-3 in the opening set but managed to force a tiebreak, in which he won by 7-2. He then lost the second set 5-7 before taking control back in the final two sets at 6-0, 6-3.

The Spaniard reached Australian Open semi-finals in 2013 and quarterfinals in 2012, both lost to Serbia’s Djokovic.

Ferrer is the Serb’s main threat in the bottom half of the draw, with top-seed Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer all playing in the other half.