Djokovic: It was not a stroll

Novak Djokovic enjoyed a stroll into the second round of the US Open at the expense of Ivan Ljubicic at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The world number four was never in trouble on the way to a 6-3 6-1 6-3 victory over the 30-year-old Croatian in one hour 37 minutes.

He was 3-0 up in the first set before Ljubicic got on the scoreboard and held his serve but it was too late to stop Djokovic, who also took a 3-0 lead in the second, breaking the former world number three twice.

Having conceded only two points on his own serve in the second set, Djokovic took a 2-0 lead in the match when the Croat played a wild overhead wide.

Ljubicic, though, at least kept in the third set for seven games before the Serb eventually broke to go 5-3 up and Djokovic closed out the match with an ace in the next game to set up a second-round match with Carsten Ball of Australia.

"I would love every match to be a walk in the park," Djokovic said, before adding: "It's not easy.

"Maybe it seems that results-wise and game-wise but if you play a big server who been the third player in the world, won a Davis Cup, had a lot of titles under his belt and so much experience, you've got to be cautious.

"I was aware of his quality, I just needed to be patient and then wait for the chances and that's what I did.

"I moved him all around the court, I served extremely well, which helped me in my performance.

"So far I feel physically fit. Game-wise I am in good form, good shape and let's just hope I can continue this way."