Ana Ivanovic, the 2008 runner-up here, moved into the second round on Tuesday night with a decisive 6-0 6-3 win over Lourdes Dominguez Lino.
Ivanovic, who crashed out in the first round at Melbourne Park last year, raced through the first set against the Spaniard in just 20 minutes, succumbing just 10 points to her opponent on Show Court 2.
Ivanovic, the No.21 seed, broke for the first-set win with a sizzling crosscourt forehand return, a shot she pounded throughout the night against the diminutive 30-year-old.
The second set, however, was a different story as Dominguez Lino’s loopy groundstrokes and tricky slice balls continued to force Ivanovic to create the pace, eventually drawing errors from the former world No.1.
But while the two battled through long games on Dominguez Lino’s serve, Ivanovic held serve easily throughout the second. She didn’t face a break point in the entire match.
“There were a lot of … annoying practices of just serving, serving, serving,” Ivanovic said of her off-season after the match. “That’s what gets you better.”
Ivanovic finally got the better of the Dominguez Lino serve in the second set when she broke after a series of deuces in the eighth game. She knocked a forehand winner past Dominguez Lino to lead 5-3, letting out a cry of joy directed at her player’s box, which included boyfriend Adam Scott, the professional Australian golfer.
It was the first time Dominguez Lino and Ivanovic, 22, had met, with the Serbian using her big groundstrokes to counter the Spaniard’s variety of spins, keeping her on the run for much of the match.
Since her run to the final in 2008, Ivanovic has gone just 3-3 at the Australian Open. She lost to world No.49 Ekaterina Makarova 10-8 in the third set in a heartbreaking first-round loss last year.
“The nerves kick in and it’s just normal,” Ivanovic said of playing at the majors. “Especially the first rounds, you want to do so well … You just have to approach every match like it’s going to be the toughest one.”
Ivanovic closed out the 65-minute encounter when Dominguez Lino sent a lob long.
The Serbian hit 32 winners in the match compared to Dominguez Lino's seven. Ivanovic also registered a solid night at the net, winning 18 of 29 approaches.
She is due to face Michaella Krajicek in the second round. The two have met twice, splitting their two encounters, both of which came in 2006.
