Red-hot Agnieszka Radwanska has over-run local hope Bojana Bobusic in the first round of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park.
The 25-year-old Bobusic – who won last month’s wildcard playoff – made a fast start and served for the first set at 5-4.
But the No.4 seed from Poland broke back for 5-5 and then reeled off the last nine games of the match to win 7-5 6-0.
Radwanska has been the form player in women’s tennis in the opening month of 2013, winning back-to-back tournaments in Auckland and Sydney, trouncing top-20 player Dominika Cibulkova 6-0 6-0 in last week’s title match at Olympic Park.
“I’m very happy I could come back in the first set and get through the first round,” said Radwanska after beating Bobusic on Monday.
Kiwi-turned-Australian Sacha Jones lost 6-3 6-2 to Kristyna Pliskova from the Czech Republic.
Jones, 22, was born in New Zealand, but changed her allegiance to Australia – where her father was born – in early 2012.
She kept pace with Pliskova for much of the opening set before the Czech upped the ante in the second set of a match which lasted 73 minutes.
There are nine Australians in action on day one of the first grand slam tournament of the year.