Murray in a hurry as Serena swelters at Oz Open

Pre-tournament favourite Andy Murray zipped through to Round 2 in double-quick time when his opponent retired injured.

Melbourne Park8217;s first glimpse of Andy Murray was a brief one on Tuesday as the pre-tournament favourite for the Australian Open zipped through to round two in double-quick time when his opponent retired injured.

Murray had been leading Andrei Pavel 6-2 3-1 when the Romanian quit after 45 minutes with a back injury that kept him out of the sport for most of last year.

8220;I guess if you want to do well in the tournament,it8217;s good to conserve some energy8230; hopefully that was a good thing,8221; fourth seed Murray said,weighing the pros and cons of a quick outing.

Serena Williams did not waste too much time either,cantering through with a 6-3 6-2 win over China8217;s Yuan Meng. The American second seed is seeking a fourth Australian title after winning here in 2003,2005 and 2007.

8220;It was a little hot for me today,8221; she smiled,sipping a drink. 8220;It was a case of taking my time,not giving 1,000 percent,you know?

8220;I was getting super thirsty out there 8211; at one stage I had to stop and have a drink of water,8221; she laughed.

8220;It was definitely extreme conditions,8221; she added,stifling a sniffle. 8220;I do have a little bit of a head cold8230; I hope that goes away.8221;

SCORCHING HEAT

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World number four Elena Dementieva survived the scorching heat to see off Kristina Barrois. Unbeaten so far this year after picking up titles in Auckland and Sydney,Dementieva beat the German 7-6 2-6 6-1.

8220;It was a very tough match,especially because of the weather conditions today. And also it was not easy for me to come here after playing so many matches in a row,8221; the blonde Russian said.

8220;I8217;m sure I wouldn8217;t have minded one or two extra days before. But those are kind of days you have to survive. I8217;m just very glad I was able to do it.8221;

She will next meet the winner of the match between Russia8217;s Vera Dushevina and Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic.

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Polish ninth seed Agnieszka Radwanska was an early casualty,however,falling 7-6 4-6 6-1 to Ukraine8217;s Kateryna Bondarenko.

Australian former world number one Lleyton Hewitt was due to do battle with 13th seed Fernando Gonzalez later on Tuesday and Serena8217;s sister Venus was to play Angelique Kerber.

Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal opens his campaign later on Tuesday against Christophe Rochus under floodlights.