Williams and Ostapenko make winning starts

Venus Williams and Jelena Ostapenko were among the first-round winners as two pre-australian Open tournaments began at Melbourne Park.

Williams needed just 65 minutes to beat Holland's Arantxa Rus 6-1, 6-3 at the Yarra Valley Classic.

Fellow American Shelby Rogers joined her in the second round with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over No 12 seed Fiona Ferro, the first seed to fall.

Rogers rallied from 5-1 down in the second set to secure a two-set win, while compatriot Jessica Pegula shocked No 15 seed Kristina Mladenovic 6-4, 6-1.

World No 11 Anastasija Sevastova proved too strong for Madison Brengle, winning 6-4, 6-2 in just 65 minutes.

Russia's Varvara Gracheva came from a set and a break down to beat Australia's Lizette Cabrera 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 .

Daria Gavrilova, playing her first match on home soil since 2019 after an injury lay-off, eased past Slovakia's Viktoria Kuzmova 6-2, 6-0. Gavrilova's next task is a date with 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.

Ana Bogdan, Mona Barthel, Marie Bouzkova and Tsvetana Pironkova also claimed first-round wins.

The Gippsland Trophy is being held alongside the Yarra Valley Classic in Melbourne, and 2017 French Open champion Ostapenko overcame Sara Errani 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 to move into the second round of that event.

Latvian Ostapenko, now ranked 45th in the world, produced a whopping 56 winners to start her 2021 season with a victory.

Former world No 4 Caroline Garcia of France kicked off her season with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Australian wildcard Arina Rodionova.