Djokovic brushes past Tomic in Miami opener

Novak Djokovic made a strong start to his bid for a seventh Miami Open title with a straight-sets win over Bernard Tomic on Friday.

The world number one, a shock loser in the last 32 at Indian Wells, was too good for Tomic 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 in the second round. Djokovic is a six-time champion in Miami, the most by a man alongside Andre Agassi.

The Serbian also improved to a 6-0 win-loss record over Tomic, who last won a set against Djokovic in their first meeting in 2011.

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Djokovic fell behind a break in the first set after needing brief treatment on what appeared to be a cut on his left hand. But Tomic was unable to consolidate and there was no looking back for Djokovic, who proved too strong in an important first-set tie-break.

An early break in the second set was ideal for Djokovic, the 15-time grand slam champion finishing with 23 winners and 14 unforced errors in a strong performance.