Top seed and Australian Open defending champion Jannik Sinner kicked off his campaign on a high with a 7-6, 7-6, 6-1 win against Nicolas Jarry at the Rod Laver Arena on Monday. The Italian had to work hard in the first two sets however he looked more in control in the third set.

The lanky Chilean had a couple of break points in the first set but failed to capitalize on it. Sinner was able to slowly lift his level and won the first two sets in the tiebreaker.

Jarry was able to put pressure on Sinner with his big serve and a massive forehand but the Italian kept his calm in difficult phases of the game.

“I think today was a very close one because the first sets, they can go both ways,” said the No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings on his on-court interview. “In the third set, when I when I broke him the first time, that gave me a little bit of room to to breathe. He is an incredible player, huge potential, so I’m happy how I handled the very tough situation in the first couple of sets and happy to be in the next round.”

Sinner also gave his gratitude to the fans who supported him in the opening round of the Happy Slam.

“The crowd and the fans, they give me so much support and it’s very nice to be back here,” he added. “Obviously, I also like the hard courts here. But let’s see, every year is different, every day is different… We’ll try to improve obviously, I have a couple of things that I can surely do better, but first official match of the year for me, so I’m very happy.”

The Italian also advised aspiring young players to keep working hard, keep a smile on their face, and trust their close family to become a quality player at the top player. Sinner also said one needs a bit of luck to go their way to reach the top echelons in the sport.

Sinner will next take on local lad Tristan Schoolkate in the second round of the Australan Open on Wednesday.