Novak Djokovic began the defence of his Paris Masters title with a clinical 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 second round win against American Maxime Cressy on Tuesday. Arriving in the French capital after back-to-back indoor titles in Tel Aviv and Astana in October, the Serbian stretched his winning run to 10 matches following his summer hiatus.

The big-serving Paris-born Cressy proved tough to crack in the opening set, saving three set points before being undone by two double faults in the tie-break. Djokovic though weathered Cressy’s aggressive but not altogether reliable delivery—he hit 15 aces and 10 double faults—and he got his break on return to lead 5-4 in the second set, to go on to serve out for the match.