Melbourne, Australia (SportsNetwork.com) - Three-time reigning and four-time overall champion Novak Djokovic was a predictable second-round winner Wednesday at the Australian Open.
The second-seeded former world No. 1 Serb closed out the day session at Rod Laver Arena with a 6-0, 6-4, 6-4 win over Argentine Leonardo Mayer. Djokovic popped 12 aces, committed only 11 unforced errors and didn't face a single break point on another scorching hot day in Melbourne.
Next up for Djokovic, who has won his last 26 matches on tour, will be Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin, who ousted 30th-seeded Russian Dmitry Tursunov by a 7-6 (7-3), 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 margin.
Spaniard David Ferrer, Czech Tomas Berdych, Swiss Stan Wawrinka and Frenchman Richard Gasquet were also among the top-10 winners on Wednesday.
The third-seeded Ferrer and seventh-seeded Berdych both dismissed Frenchmen at Hisense Arena, as Ferrer beat Adrian Mannarino 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 6-0, 6-3 after Berdych topped Kenny De Schepper 6-4, 6-1, 6-3.
Ferrer will face another Frenchman in Jeremy Chardy in the third round after the 29th-seeded Chardy downed Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov 7-5, 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-5).
Berdych's next opponent will be Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, who moved on after Croat Ivan Dodig retired. Dzumhur fought back from two sets down and was leading 4-1 in the fourth set when the 32nd-seeded Dodig called it quits.
There were eight retirements on the men's side in the first round.
Meanwhile, the eighth-seeded Wawrinka downed Colombian Alejandro Falla 6-3, 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4 and the ninth-seeded Gasquet humbled former world No. 3 Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 6-4.
Up next for Wawrinka will be rising Canadian Vasek Pospisil, while Gasquet will encounter Spanish veteran Tommy Robredo on Friday.
German Florian Mayer took out 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3; 15th-seeded Italian Fabio Fognini held off Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2; the 17th-seeded Robredo registered a 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1, 7-6 (8-6) win against France's Julien Benneteau; 19th-seeded South African Kevin Anderson claimed a 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Austria's Dominic Thiem; 20th-seeded Pole Jerzy Janowicz fought back to best Spaniard Pablo Andujar 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5), 6-3; American Sam Querrey cruised to a 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 upset victory over 23rd-seeded Latvian Ernests Gulbis; and the 28th-seeded Pospisil overcame Aussie Matthew Ebden 3-6, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (11-9), 6-1. Querrey fired 19 aces past Gulbis, saying he had "one of the best service days of my life" on Wednesday.
One other second-round result saw France's Edouard Roger-Vasselin notch a 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 victory over Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
The second round is scheduled to conclude on Thursday, as world No. 1 Rafael Nadal will take on 17-year-old Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis, fourth-seeded three- time Aussie Open runner-up Andy Murray will tangle with Frenchman Vincent Millot, fifth-seeded former U.S. Open champ and last week's Sydney titlist Juan Martin del Potro will face Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, and sixth-seeded Swiss icon Roger Federer will be opposed by Slovenian Blaz Kavcic.
Nadal is the reigning U.S. and French Open champion and captured an Aussie title in 2009, while Federer owns four Aussie titles among his men's-record 17 major championships.
Also on Day 4, 10th-seeded former Aussie runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will battle Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci, 11th-seeded Canadian slugger Milos Raonic will face Romanian veteran Victor Hanescu, and 25th-seeded flashy Frenchman Gael Monfils will lock horns with American Jack Sock.
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