Novak Djokovic back with a bang as he enjoys impressive win over Donald Young

Djokovic had not played a proper match since his quarter-final exit at Wimbledon last June after missing the second half of 2017 in a bid to recover from an elbow injury.

Seeded 14 after dropping down the ATP rankings, Djokovic is nevertheless a big contender to win the Australian Open, having been champion no less than six times at Melbourne Park.

Djokovic could not convert five match points on the Young serve at 5-3 in the final set but raced through his own service game to put a seal on his impressive return and set up a clash with either Frenchman Gael Monfils or qualifier Jaume Munar.

Wearing a compression sleeve on his serving arm, Djokovic showed no signs of the elbow trouble that cut short his 2017 season as he swung freely to amass 33 winners during the one hour and 51 minute rout at a sunbathed Margaret Court Arena.

Djokovic was playing his first match since he retired during his Wimbledon quarter-final, and despite landing barely half of his first serves with his newly modified action, it was an impressive performance from the six-times Melbourne Park champion.