Djokovic rolls back years, Sinner supreme, Keys books third round berth

MELBOURNE, Jan 22 : Novak Djokovic rolled back the years to reach the Australian Open third round on Thursday but Jannik Sinner, the man who has usurped him as king of Melbourne Park, showed why he is favourite to claim a hat-trick of titles.

Women's defending champion Madison Keys overcame a second-set wobble against Ashlyn Krueger to also advance while former champion Naomi Osaka toned down her outfit but not her power game as she also reached round three.

Iga Swiatek continued her quest to complete her career Grand Slam with a 6-2 6-3 victory over unseeded Marie Bouzkova.

Fourth seed Djokovic, seeking a record-extending 11th Melbourne Park title and 25th Grand Slam trophy overall to break the deadlock with Margaret Court, eased past Italian qualifier Francesco Maestrelli 6-3 6-2 6-2.

The 38-year-old Serb maintained his steady grip on the second-round clash without needing to shift into top gear.

"I didn't know much about him (Maestrelli) until a few days ago, it happens more often than not these days," Djokovic said of his 23-year-old opponent.

He raced through the opening set and pounced again in the opening game of the second set to heap pressure on world number 141 Maestrelli. The win was Djokovic's 399th in Grand Slams and his 101st in Melbourne, leaving him one shy of record‑holder Roger Federer. Djokovic will next meet Botic van de Zandschulp.

There was something of a retro feel about day five in the men's singles with Swiss former champion Stan Wawrinka, 40, outlasting Arthur Gea 4-6 6-3 3-6 7-5 7-6 (10-3) while Marin Cilic, 37, dispatched 21st seed Denis Shapovalov 6-4 6-3 6-2.

In 2009, Djokovic, Cilic and Wawrinka all reached round three and 17 years later they are still going strong.

The man to beat on blue Melbourne