Federer sweeps past qualifier; Notches 60th match win in Melbourne

Third seed Roger Federer, who is bidding to become the second man in Australian Open history to win five titles, got his campaign off to a strong start with a 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 win over Russian qualifier Alexander Kudryavtsev on Monday.

It was the Swiss superstar's 60th match win at Melbourne Park (60-8 overall). Federer hit 14 aces and 43 winners in the first-time meeting, which lasted one hour and 38 minutes on Rod Laver Arena. Kudryavtsev, making his Grand Slam championship debut, committed 42 unforced errors.

"I'm always excited," said Federer on returning to the Australian Open. "I felt it actually walking down that Walk of Champions, getting out on court and feeling like, you know what, I have good intensity and I am really excited to see the Aussie crowd. I was anxious to find out how I was going to play, how my opponent was going to play me. I was really excited and a little nervous actually going into it, which was a good feeling to have. I'm looking forward to the other matches."

Federer won his four titles in 2004 (d. Safin), 2006 (d. Baghdatis), 2007 (d. Gonzalez) and 2010 (d. Murray).

Date: 16.01.2012, Source: ATP