World number one and top seed Djokovic defeated 79th-ranked Schwartzman 6-1, 6-2, 6-4, wrapping up the marquee match on Arthur Ashe Stadium court minutes before midnight.
Schwartzman, playing just his second Grand Slam tournament and his first tour-level hardcourt event, pulled the Serbian star into rallies from the baseline, even breaking him for his only game of the opening set.
Trailing 2-3 in the third, Schwartzman broke Djokovic to knot the set at 3-3, but Djokovic, seeking to add a second US Open title to the one he captured back in 2011, promptly broke him at love for a 4-3 lead and sealed the victory on his second match point with a shot that clipped the net and fell his way.
Former champions Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams also advanced, taking center stage with two-time defending champion Serena Williams and five-time champion Roger Federer due to launch their campaigns later on Tuesday. Murray lumbered through a 6-3, 7-6 (8/6), 1-6, 7-5 victory over 70th-ranked Dutchman Robin Haase, battling painful muscle cramps that struck without warning. Murray twice fought back from a break down in the fourth, Haase unable to press his advantage at 4-1 and again at 5-3 even as Murray could be seen clutching various areas of his body on shot after shot.
Murray finally gained the decisive break for a 6-5 lead and finished off the match after just over three hours. Fifth-seeded Sharapova, who lifted the trophy in 2006, rallied with a vengeance from an early break against fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko. Trailing 2-4, Sharapova won the next 10 games to take the match. Venus Williams, the winner in 2000 and 2001, punched her second-rund ticket with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Japanese veteran Kimiko Date Krumm.
Other notable names in action included Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka, the men’s third seed who defeated Czech Jiri Vesely 6-2, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/3). Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic, the fifth seed, pelted Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel with 20 aces in a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7/1) victory. Women’s second seed Simona Halep shook off first-round jitters to defeat unranked US wildcard Danielle Collins 6-7 (2/7), 6-1, 6-2.
Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland showed no sign of big-tournament nerves, but the fourth-seeded Pole said she felt them nonetheless in a 6-1, 6-0 drubbing of Canadian Sharon Fichman.
Schwartzman, playing just his second Grand Slam tournament and his first tour-level hardcourt event, pulled the Serbian star into rallies from the baseline, even breaking him for his only game of the opening set.
Trailing 2-3 in the third, Schwartzman broke Djokovic to knot the set at 3-3, but Djokovic, seeking to add a second US Open title to the one he captured back in 2011, promptly broke him at love for a 4-3 lead and sealed the victory on his second match point with a shot that clipped the net and fell his way.
Former champions Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams also advanced, taking center stage with two-time defending champion Serena Williams and five-time champion Roger Federer due to launch their campaigns later on Tuesday. Murray lumbered through a 6-3, 7-6 (8/6), 1-6, 7-5 victory over 70th-ranked Dutchman Robin Haase, battling painful muscle cramps that struck without warning. Murray twice fought back from a break down in the fourth, Haase unable to press his advantage at 4-1 and again at 5-3 even as Murray could be seen clutching various areas of his body on shot after shot.
Murray finally gained the decisive break for a 6-5 lead and finished off the match after just over three hours. Fifth-seeded Sharapova, who lifted the trophy in 2006, rallied with a vengeance from an early break against fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko. Trailing 2-4, Sharapova won the next 10 games to take the match. Venus Williams, the winner in 2000 and 2001, punched her second-rund ticket with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Japanese veteran Kimiko Date Krumm.
Other notable names in action included Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka, the men’s third seed who defeated Czech Jiri Vesely 6-2, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/3). Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic, the fifth seed, pelted Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel with 20 aces in a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7/1) victory. Women’s second seed Simona Halep shook off first-round jitters to defeat unranked US wildcard Danielle Collins 6-7 (2/7), 6-1, 6-2.
Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland showed no sign of big-tournament nerves, but the fourth-seeded Pole said she felt them nonetheless in a 6-1, 6-0 drubbing of Canadian Sharon Fichman.