Djokovic, Murray advance to Aussie Open third round

Defending Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic looked the part on Thursday, easing through to the third round with a convincing win to join former finalists Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. World number one Djokovic was too strong for Colombia's 56th-ranked Santiago Giraldo, reeling off a convincing 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 win in 1hr 42min on Rod Laver Arena. The Serb, chasing a third consecutive grand slam after winning Wimbledon and the US Open last year, will face Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in the last 32. Murray needed almost two hours to subdue Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin in three sets, while Tsonga stormed past Brazil's Ricardo Mello in straight sets. "Santiago came out early hitting the ball quite flat. But I knew that, you know, sooner or later he's going to drop the rhythm and I just have to hang in there. I've done a good job," said Djokovic. The top seed said he enjoyed playing in the Rod Laver Arena, where he has won two of his four grand slam titles. "It is true from one side that when I step in there I feel that I belong there, that I know what to do, that I feel more confident maybe than the other courts around the world," he added. Only four men on five occasions have won three or more consecutive grand slams in the Open era -- Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer twice. Djokovic was always in command of the match, breaking Giraldo's serve seven times for his second win over the Colombian. It was the sixth straight year that Djokovic has reached the third round in Melbourne and comes after his stellar 2011 which started with seven straight tournament victories in a 41-match winning streak. Djokovic, 24, won a career-best 10 titles in 11 finals last year. He defeated world number two Rafael Nadal six times and overall was 21-4 against top-10 opponents. Murray, a runner-up in the past two years in Melbourne, remained unbeaten in seven matches this season following a 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 win over the 101-ranked Roger-Vasselin in Hisense Arena. Murray is bidding to become Britain's first male grand slam winner since Fred Perry in 1936. Tsonga, a runner-up to Djokovic in 2008, was another convincing winner Thursday, blasting away Mello, 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 in just under two hours on Hisense Arena. The Frenchman broke Mello's serve five times in setting up a third round encounter with Portugal's Frederico Gil. Gil eliminated Spanish 26th seed Marcel Granollers 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. Tsonga showed glimpses of his best form, raising hopes of another run deep into the tournament. "Physically, I feel really good. Last year it was difficult for me because I was a bit injured. This year I don't have injury, so I feel good," said Tsonga, who crashed out in the third round in 2011. "I'm in good shape. I hope and I expect to play a good tournament." Tsonga has a liking for the Melbourne hardcourts and improved his match record at the Open to 19-5. Elsewhere in the men's draw on the fourth day, Serbian ninth seed Janko Tipsarevic came from a set down to oust Australian wild card James Duckworth, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 and big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic downed German Philipp Petzschner in four sets. Raonic, who thundered down a fastest serve of 225 kilometres per hour (140 miles per hour), will face the winner of the Andy Roddick-Lleyton Hewitt night match. Spanish fifth seed David Ferrer, a semi-finalist last year, was taken to five sets by American Ryan Sweeting before prevailing 6-3 in the fifth.