Tennis - Djokovic overcomes Belgian underdog in Rome

Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic quelled some early resistance from Belgium's Steve Darcis before prevailing 6-4 6-0 on Wednesday to reach the third round of the Rome Masters.

The Serb had to recover an early break in the first set and save two break points in the ninth game, before Darcis threw away his final service game of the set to love with a series of unforced errors.

The Belgian looked dismayed at having contributed to his own downfall and the world number three was able to run away with second set.

Rafael Nadal starts his bid for fourth consecutive Rome Masters title later on Wednesday with a second-round match against fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, the unseeded 2001 champion.

Roger Federer moved into the third round on Tuesday with a 6-3 6-3 victory over Guillermo Canas. The world number one will face the winner of today's late match between Italy's Potito Starace and Croatia's Ivo Karlovic.