Former US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro eased into the second round of the Indian Wells WTA tournament with a 6-4 6-0 demolition of Czech Radek Stepanek on Thursday. Argentine del Potro, who played just three tournaments last year because of an injury to his right wrist, broke his opponent twice in the opening set and three times in the second to seal victory in 84 minutes.
"I broke his serve very soon and took confidence with my serve," the six-foot six-inch (1.98 metre) del Potro told reporters. "That helped my whole game, and with my forehand especially. I played a good match." It was the first time the Argentine had beaten Stepanek in three meetings, having lost to the Czech twice in 2009. "It was very close in those matches but today I played better than him," said del Potro, who won his eighth ATP title at last month's Delray Beach International Championships.