Ferrer overcomes heat to move into Australian Open's third round

Melbourne: Third-seeded David Ferrer overcame a slow start to beat Adrian Mannarino of France 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-0, 6-3 in a second-round match Wednesday at the Australian Open.

Ferrer trailed 3-0 in the opening set before rallying in the tiebreaker, then fell behind 4-1 in the second before taking control in the final two sets.

Mannarino appeared to be more adversely affected by the hot temperatures and had a visit from the tournament doctor in the fourth set.

Ferrer is three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic's main threat in the bottom half of the draw, with top-seeded Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer all playing in the other half.

The Spanish baseliner has lost to Djokovic in the last two Australian Opens, in the semi-finals last year and the 2012 quarter-finals.