Novak Djokovic nominated his ruthlessness as critical to a straight-sets win over Vasek Pospisil on Tuesday as he returned to action with a victory, almost a month after his Australian Open success.
The world number one defeated Canada's Pospisil 6-4 6-4 at the Dubai Tennis Championships and Djokovic was thrilled with how he converted rare opportunities against his opponent's serve.
The Serb converted three of four break-point opportunities in his first match since claiming a fifth Australian Open title at the start of February, but Djokovic conceded he is yet to return to his best form.
"It's my first match since the Australian Open final so I'm still looking for that rhythm on the court. I managed to stay mentally tough, patient and as soon as I got into the rallies I had a better chance of winning," he said.
"He's [Pospisil] a very flashy player, aggressive, goes after his shots. He served well first set. I just utilised my opportunities.
"When his first serve percentage dropped, I knew that's my chance. I won a lot of those second serve points. I think that's what decided the match, even though my serve wasn't at the level where I wanted it to be today. So hopefully the next match can be better."
When asked if his number one ranking could have disrupted Pospisil, who is ranked 62 places lower, Djokovic admitted it is a factor but cannot decided a match on its own.
"I remember when I was coming up and playing against Roger [Federer] and Rafa [Rafael Nadal] in big matches where I felt like the whole tournament I played great, but then against them it doesn't happen the way that I wanted," the 27-year-old said.
"That's the pressure of playing against somebody that is so successful and a favourite. Before coming into the match, you already have that mental edge, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to stay like that throughout the whole match.
"So you need to be the one making an impression on the court and showing that you're there to win."