Rafael Nadal swatted away the threat posed by American qualifier Alex Kuznetsov to reach the second round at the Australian Open.

Tommy Haas relinquished his place in the world top 10 after crashing out of the US Clay Court Championships, while James Blake battled into the last four with a hard-fought victory over Argentinean Juan Monaco.

Fifth seed James Blake made it safely into the second round of the Australian Open after beating Spaniard Carlos Moya 7-6 (10/8) 6-2 6-4 in straight sets.