Alexander Zverev put aside off-court legal problems to battle past fellow German Dominik Koepfer and into the Australian Open second round on Tuesday.
The seventh seed was made to grind on Margaret Court Arena before toppling the world number 62 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/3), 6-3. His appearance came a day after a Berlin court said he would face trial in May for allegedly assaulting his former girlfriend in 2020.
He denies the accusation. The 26-year-old was in October ordered to pay a 450,000 euro ($475,300) fine over the incident, but he contested the ruling and the case will now go to court.
Fresh from helping Germany win the United Cup ahead of the Australian Open, Zverev kept his focus on tennis matters in Melbourne. "Credit to him because he played fantastic," he said of his countryman. "In the beginning I obviously wasn't playing my best.