Lleyton Hewitt produced a clinical display to reach the second round of the Australian Open.

Hewitt is Australia’s only realistic shot of a male player going deep into the draw and Hewitt believes he can still cause some serious damage.

He served notice of his intentions with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 drubbing of Brazilian qualifier Ricardo Hocevar.

“It's always tough first round of any Slam, probably a little bit more so because I had no idea really how he played either,” Hewitt said. “Did all the homework we could do before the match, but until you actually get out there, you never really know. He's a grinder. He was gonna hit a lot of balls back, and he served better than I thought he would. But I returned really well, especially at the start.”

Hewitt has always won his points through grinding out long rallies from the back but with his advancing years the Australian has realized he needs to limit the pressure on his dodgy hip and is looking to get more cheap points off serve, dictate more with his forehand and finish points off at the net.

On this evidence, the new style is working well so far.

“I’m hitting the ball pretty well,” Hewitt said. “Throughout last year and at Wimbledon, I hit the ball extremely well and made a good run there. I had to knock off del Potro, and a month later he wins the US Open. So my ball?striking has been pretty good. Ever since I came back from hip surgery, it's more the confidence in moving and getting into the right position to do it.”

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