Serbian great Noak Djokovic has begun his quest for history at the US Open with a win over Denmark's Holger Rune on Wednesday (NZ time).
After breezing through the opening set, Djokovic stumbled in the second, before closing out the match 6-1 7-6 6-2 6-1.
If the 34-year-old wins the US Open, it will be his 21st grand-slam singles title, breaking the record that he currently shares with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
It will also mean that he will have captured all four majors in 2021, completing a calendar grand slam, the rarest feat in tennis.
Earlier, German Alexander Zverev got his bid for a maiden major off to a smooth start by beating American Sam Querrey 6-4 7-5 6-2.
Querrey kept the match close through the first two sets but was stymied by unforced errors, as 2020 runner-up Zverev kept his game comparatively clean and fired off 25 winners.
The world No. 4 went in for the kill in the third set and with the fifth game secured a double-break lead to shift the momentum squarely in his favour, never facing a break point himself during the entire match.
In a showdown between two 1.98m power servers, Zverev's consistency proved critical and he won 90 percent of his first-serve points compared to 70 percent for Querrey, who fended off three match points in the seventh game but was nonetheless defeated in a brisk one hour and 40 minutes.
Zverev, who was two points away from winning a year ago before Dominic Thiem rallied to victory, is among the younger cohort hoping to upset world No. 1 Novak Djokovic's bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam.
"Novak is chasing history," said Zverev. "But I think the guys are going to try and get in the way of that and I'm looking forward to maybe giving him a challenge as well."
The win extended his unbeaten streak to 12, after he beat Djokovic in the Tokyo semi-finals to win Olympic gold and walked away with the Western & Southern Open title earlier this month.
He faces Albert Ramos-Vinolas of Spain or Lucas Pouille of France in the second round.
American Maxime Cressy came back from two sets down to stun Spanish ninth seed Pablo Carreno Busta 5-7 4-6 6-1 6-4 7-6(7).
Earlier, Italian 20-year-old Jannik Sinner beat Max Purcell 6-4 6-2 4-6 6-2 while compatriot Andreas Seppi saved four match points in his 2-6 7-5 6-4 2-6 7-6(13) win over Marton Fucsovics.
Italian world No. 8 Matteo Berrettini, a semi-finalist two years ago, found his rhythm after two tough sets to overcome Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 7-6(5) 7-6(7) 6-3.
Canadian seventh seed Denis Shapovalov breezed past Federico Delbonis 6-2 6-2 6-3 in a battle of the left-handers, ending a four-match losing streak since his quarter-final victory over Karen Khachanov at Wimbledon.
Russian 25th seed Khachanov was upset by South African Lloyd Harris 6-4 1-6 4-6 6-3 6-2, while Poland's Hubert Hurkacz moved past Egor Gerasimov from Belarus with a comfortable 6-3 6-4 6-3 win.
American 22nd seed Reilly Opelka, a finalist at the Canadian Open earlier this month, hit 33 aces past South Korea's Soonwoo Kwon to claim a 7-6(3) 6-4 6-4 victory.
Belgian 27th seed David Goffin lost 6-2 7-5 6-3 to American world No.30 Mackenzie McDonald.
Reuters/Newshub.
