Alexander Zverev produced a solid match to beat Marco Cecchinato 6-4 7-6(4) 6-3 to reach the second round of the Australian Open.
The German was the more clinical player as he won his first match of the 2020 season with a straight sets win at a grand slam.
Next for Zverev will be either Casper Ruud or Egor Gerasimov as he looks to reach the last eight in Melbourne for the first time in his career.
At the start of another Alexander Zverev grand slam journey, the German produced a solid start as both players opened up the court nicely.
Trading hard-hitting groundstrokes from the back of the court, Cecchinato looked the more likely to gain the opening break as his backhand was on top form.
Eventually it was the Italian who sealed the breakthrough at 4-2 but the lead didn’t last long as his serve under pressure failed him.
Now back on track, Zverev’s return game was on form when it needed to be and some great athleticism was on show as he broke in a long-winded game to serve for the set.
Serve for the set is what the German did as he completed a run of four consecutive games to win the opening set.
There was more of the same from the world number seven as he remained solid on serve while Cecchinato looked to be more aggressive and move into the baseline more often.
Once again some aggressive backhands set up the chance to break the Zverev serve which he did on the fourth occasion in the game.
However once again the former Roland Garros semi-finalist cracked under pressure as Zverev glided around the court to force the errors out of Cecchinato.
A break back when serving for the set saw Zverev back in the match as he managed to cut out some unnecessary errors from his game.
The German’s determination and heart would be rewarded as he managed to produce his best tennis when it mattered as he took the second set tiebreak 7-4.
It was a roar of delight for Zverev as he secured a two sets lead while Cecchinato was left frustrated as he missed some simple returns.
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The world number 77’s frustrations continued to grow as his early break advantage was once again snuffed out by the Opportune German.
Eventually it would be Zverev who would be the more clinical player and capitalised on his opponent’s mistakes better as another break in the eighth game secured an important victory for Zverev.
It isn’t often that Zverev wins in straight sets at a grand slam event in the first week, so to achieve that in the opening round is a big milestone for him.
Next for Zverev will be either Casper Ruud or Egor Gerasimov in the second round as he looks to reach the last eight in Melbourne and meet Daniil Medvedev in the second week.
