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Novak Djokovic launched his quest for a record-breaking 23rd men's Grand Slam singles title with a 6-3 6-2 7-6 (7-1) first-round victory over debutant Aleksandar Kovacevic at the French Open.
The former two-time champion breezed through the first two sets before encountering resistance from the 24-year-old American whose lack of experience then showed in the tie-break on the world's biggest clay court.
But Djokovic ended the contest with a sizzling service return on his first match point to set up a meeting with Hungarian journeyman Marton Fucsovics.
The third seed has not dropped a set in the opening round at Roland Garros since 2010, so this was a daunting task for Kovacevic, who is of Serbian heritage and idolised Djokovic as a child.
Kovacevic, who first watched Djokovic play at the US Open 18 years ago, made a confident start to his Grand Slam main draw debut, but Djokovic claimed the first break of the match in the sixth game.
Despite a third-set turnaround in which the American rallied from 3-5 to force a tie-break, Djokovic held firm to complete the win in which he converted five of his 12 break points and struck 41 winners.