Austria's Dominic Thiem makes a forehand return to Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Feb 8, 2021. (RICK RYCROFT / AP)

MELBOURNE - Dominic Thiem overcame an early wobble before overpowering Mikhail Kukushkin 7-6(2) 6-2 6-3 to reach the second round of the Australian Open on Monday.

Third seed Thiem was broken twice in the first set and had to fight off a set point at 6-5 before rallying to take the tiebreak at Rod Laver Arena.

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The Austrian, beaten in a five-set final by Novak Djokovic last year, found his rhythm and ended up racing to the finish, breaking Kukushkin to love to seal the match.

US Open champion Thiem will meet the winner of Dominik Koepfer and Hugo Dellien for a place in the third round.