Reigning Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic played less than his best tennis in the windy conditions on Saturday at the Pacific Life Open, but still managed to produce a straight-sets victory against Italian Andreas Seppi, the player responsible for upsetting World No. 2 Rafael Nadal last month in Rotterdam.

Seppi put forth a last ditch effort late in the second set as he saved a match point at 5-3 and broke Djokovic to level the score. He dropped serve in the next game to give the Serb his second chance to serve out the match, but once again won the crucial points to send the set to a tie-break. Djokovic finally pulled through to clinch the match, 6-3, 7-6(3).

“I started well, and I played first set pretty solid,” said World No. 3 Djokovic. “But then suddenly in the end of the second set, since that match point, I started making a lot of mistakes... It was so windy that you couldn't get the rhythm, so that probably caused a lot of unforced errors.”

Last year, a 19-year-old Djokovic became the youngest player to reach the Indian Wells final since American Andre Agassi in 1990. Afterwards, he broke into the Top 10 for the first time in his career. He said: “It was the kind of important moment in turning point in my career. I played my first Masters Series final here, and this is where I think I got that extra thing in my head, which I needed to have: It's confidence, and belief that I can win against the top players and then to be there.”

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal began his title defense Saturday, converting on all four of his break point chances against Colombian qualifier Santiago Giraldo to advance to the third round with a 6-3, 6-3 win. The 20-year-old Giraldo was making his ATP Masters Series debut.

Nadal won his first of six titles last season here in Indian Wells without the loss of a set, defeating Djokovic in the youngest final in tournament history. The 21-year-old Spaniard enters his fifth tournament of the 2008 season with a 12-4 record, and is looking to hoist his first trophy of the year.

World No. 5 David Ferrer and No. 8 Richard Gasquet had no difficulties getting through their opening matches. Ferrer dismissed Belgian Olivier Rochus for the second straight week 6-2, 6-2, and Gasquet reversed losses against Swede Robin Soderling in their last two meetings to advance with a 6-3, 6-2 win.

Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was a winner in his Pacific Life Open debut, knocking out Israeli Dudi Sela, and next faces fellow Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu, who ousted Italian lucky loser Fabio Fognini.

Czech Tomas Berdych, the World No. 10, became the first seed to fall in the men’s draw as he failed to hold onto a set lead against Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka, falling 2-6, 7-6(3), 6-4. Finn No. 26 seed Jarkko Nieminen, who served for the win in the second set, also saw his lead slip away as Korean Hyung-Taik Lee came back to win 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3.