The match at Hisense Arena, the tournament’s second covered court, was suspended at 2-2 in second set so that organizers could close the roof, which had been opened despite rain in the area.
No. 5 Andy Murray had no such trouble on the main court later Monday, although the British player encountered different conditions to what he expected in a 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 win over South Africa’s Kevin Anderson.
Story continues below ↓advertisement | your ad here“Little bit weird playing under the roof here — first time I’ve done it,” he said.
Later in the day, defending champion Rafael Nadal topped Australian Peter Luczak 7-6 (0), 6-1, 6-4.
Second-seeded Nadal, who claimed his first Grand Slam singles title on hard courts when he beat Roger Federer in last year's final at Melbourne Park, was back in Rod Laver Arena on Monday facing a pro-Luczak hometown crowd.
The Spanish left-hander didn't find his rhythm until the latter part of the first set, dominating the tiebreaker and much of the remainder of the match.
Top-seeded Federer plays his first-round match Tuesday against Igor Andreev of Russia.
Juan Martin del Potro didn't have as easy of a time, gutting out a four-set win while battling a sore wrist.
The U.S. Open champion fired 21 aces - one at 135 mph (220 kph) - as he overpowered American Michael Russell 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 in the first round of the Australian Open on Monday.
The rising Argentinian star, seeded No. 4 in Melbourne, played with his right wrist and forearm taped to stave off a recurrence of tendinitis but said it hurt "a little bit" while he was playing.
"I don't feel 100 percent," del Potro said after the three-hour match. "After two hours, the pain came."
The 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) del Potro, with his big serves and bigger forehands, was unheralded until his epic win over Roger Federer at the U.S. Open. He stunned the tennis world by ending Federer's streak of five straight U.S. Open titles and beating Rafael Nadal en route to the final - making him the only man to beat both players at a Grand Slam event.
On Monday, del Potro's opponent measured in at 5-foot-8 (1.73 meters) - nearly a foot shorter than the Argentine. Russell described the challenges of facing a player with what he called del Potro's "wingspan."
"He's creating angles that I'm just not able to create," said Russell, who is ranked 90th.
"He's able to cover the court without taking as many steps. He has more power as well because he has more leverage," Russell said, adding that the higher bounce coming off del Potro's serve forced him to stand back near the wall to receive serves - making it harder for him to recover. "That's giving up way too much ground for me to do that."
Russell faced some height jokes from spectators in the stands - but he won over the crowd with his impressive speed and acrobatics. At one point the 31-year-old American lunged into a split to make a forehand winner and break del Potro's serve midway through the second set.
The crowd at the Hisense Arena, the tournament's second show court, turned on the Argentine and applauded his errors after he had an angry and lengthy exchange with the chair umpire in game six of the third set.
Russell had hit a return that del Potro thought was out but the Argentine whacked it back across the net anyway and was surprised when Russell returned it for a winner. Del Potro wanted to challenge the call but the chair umpire ruled that he had waited too long.
Federer, Nadal cruiseMalaga win Caicedo race
