The former world number one, who will be chasing a record seventh Australian Opencrown next week, had pulled out of a warm-up Abu Dhabi tournament, raising concerns over whether he would be fit enough to play at Melbourne Park. "There was a doubt, especially after I pulled out of the first week of the year," he admitted. "I personally didn't know what's going to happen. We did some treatment and obviously gave it a lot of thought. Luckily for me I'm here and so I'm hoping in the next four, five days everything will go well and I'll be ready for the Open." While pleased at his progress, Djokovic, who has dropped to 14 in the world, admitted he still had work to do ahead of the opening Grand Slam of the year.? For the first time in 183 days, Novak Djokovic has won a game of tennis.
— bet365_aus (@bet365_aus) January 10, 2018
Tap ? if it's good to see him back.#KooyongClassic pic.twitter.com/iZqgg6TFt4
"I don't want to be over-confident, but I'm very, very happy with how it went today," added the 30-year-old. "I don't say I'm at 100 percent, I can only say that when I get the feel of a tournament. Ideally I would have had another tournament before the start of the Open, but it was not meant to be. "I'll take whatever I can -- one or two matches here will be good preparation." Thiem, who only arrived in Melbourne on Monday night from Doha after four days in bed with a virus, presented only a minimal challenge to the recharged Serb. "I'm free of fever and healthy again," the Austrian said. "I'm still jet-lagged and was slow at the beginning of the match. I'll sleep, eat and train and not do too much. I'll be fine for the Open." Australian Matthew Ebden, back on court after an injury-marred 2017, defeated Marin Cilic 6-7 (3/7), 6-4, 7-5 in another match at the exhibition tournament.Djokovic mid match interview. "I'm smilling inside and outside. I just love this sport so much".
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) January 10, 2018
World number six Cilic won the opener but found his game not quite up to competitive level as Ebden sneaked out the second set and then won a tight third. Cilic, last year's losing Wimbledon finalist against Roger Federer, heads into his final practice days for the Australian Open content with his form. "The most important thing is to feel the conditions, to get comfortable," he said. "It's important to find a good rhythm. "Overall, I'm quite happy with my level. I was feeling the ball well and hitting cleanly from both sides."HE'S BACK. @DjokerNole steamrolls the World No. 5 @ThiemDomi 6-1 in the first set, with another classic Djokovic return. pic.twitter.com/dOJtnK9LCw
— #7TENNIS ? (@7tennis) January 10, 2018
‘It worked pretty well’: Djokovic on passing Thiem test after return from injury
— The Field (@thefield_in) January 10, 2018
- https://t.co/uT0QNv5Mf7 pic.twitter.com/XsCE0lFYsO