Confident Djokovic's 21st win in 22 matches

PARIS - Novak Djokovic was a confident man on Wednesday, and Chilean Cristian Garin had no chance as the Serb clinched a 6-1, 6-1 first-round win at the Astana Open in just 62 minutes.

Fresh from winning the Tel Aviv final on Sunday, the 35-year-old Djokovic put in a near-perfect display in Kazakhstan, converting five from eight break points to beat the 81st-ranked Garin for the third time in as many meetings.

"From the start to the end, (it was) a great performance," said Djokovic, who claimed his 21st victory in his last 22 matches.

"Playing in a new tournament, different conditions, the first match is never easy. Obviously you are looking to see how you are going to adapt, but I did it perfectly, really.

"I was lucky that throughout my career, I was actually pretty quick in adjusting to different conditions and surfaces.

"Coming into this tournament I feel confident, I feel excited, I feel motivated, so I think that helps as well to adjust quickly."

He will next face world No. 34 Botic van de Zandschulp.

Djokovic won his third title of 2022 and 89th of his career in the Tel Aviv hard-court final. He is also the only ATP player to win titles on all three surfaces this season, including on clay (Rome) and on grass (Wimbledon).

Ranked seventh in the world, Djokovic - having won a Grand Slam title this campaign - just needs to finish in the top 20 to book a place at the season-ending ATP Finals in November.

That would give him the opportunity to end 2022 with a flourish, after starting the year being deported from Australia over his controversial vaccination stance.

Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz said that he would "take lessons" from his shock first-round exit on Tuesday after losing 7-5, 6-3 to Belgium's David Goffin.

The US Open champion, in his first ATP match as the world No. 1, suffered his first straight-sets defeat since last November as Goffin made the most of his second chance as a lucky loser.

"He played better than me, really, really aggressive," said Alcaraz. "I couldn't handle that pressure that he was pushing on me and of course it's something that I have to learn and take lessons from this match."

Goffin earned a spot in the main draw only after the withdrawal of Danish teenager Holger Rune.

However, he lost to Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 in the last 16 on Wednesday.

AFP, REUTERS

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