LEAD: Azarenka hammers Briton Watson to start Australian Open

Jan 16, 2012, 4:12 GMT

Melbourne - Third seed Victoria Azarenka notched the first victory of the 2012 Australian Open Monday with a 6-1, 6-0 thrashing of Heather Watson.

Last week's Sydney champion was untouchable in her runaway win over the 19-year-old Briton, ranked 106th and playing the open for the first time.

The match was over in 67 minutes with Azarenka to line up next against Australian wildcard Casey Dellacqua, a winner over Serb Bojana Jovanovski 6-3, 6-2.

Azrenka wore shorts as heat returned to Melbourne after a week of cold, windy, rainy weather.

'The score is easy,' the seed said. 'To actually play the match, it's never easy. I only hit here once before the match. The first time I actually hit on centre court was today in the morning.

'It was a good performance, but there are a few things to work on to be better in the second round. But I take what I get. I cannot complain.'

Eighth seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland won a struggle with Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-7 (10-12), 6-4, 6-2. Slovak Daniela Hantuchova accounted for a second American with her 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 defeat of qualifier Varvara Lepchenko.

Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues beat Czech Eva Birnerova 6-3, 6-3, and Eleni Daniilidou of Greece defeated Japan's 40-year-old Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-3, 6-2.

It was the fourth year in a row that the veteran lost in the Melbourne first round since returning to tennis in 2009 after a decade away.

In the men's draw, seeds Nicolas Almagro and Juan Del Potro advanced with four-set wins.

Number 10 Spaniard Almagro held off Pole Lukasz Kubot 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-5 while Argentine Del Potro won his 16th-consecutive first-round match at a Grand Slam, putting out Adrian Mannarino 2-6, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4.

South African Kevin Anderson defeated Denmark's Frederik Neilsen 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 while Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia dismissed Briton James Ward 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

Italian Flavio Cipolla beat four-time quarter-finalist and former top five player Nikolay Davydenko with the 30-year-old Russian losing 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.