Djokovic defeats Aslan Karatsev, Cameron Norrie wins in Rome
Djokovic, who turns 35 later this month, responded to last week's defeat by Carlos Alcaraz in Madrid with a 6-3 6-2 win in the Rome second round.
British number one Cameron Norrie shook off some early nerves to beat teenage wildcard Luca Nardi in the first round.
Norrie, 26, served well in the key moments to win 6-4 6-4.
Serbia's Djokovic received a first-round bye as the top seed and, three days after losing to Alcaraz in the Madrid semi-finals continued his preparations for his defence of the French Open with a one-sided win over Karatsev.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has not played as much as he usually would going into Roland Garros, having been stopped from defending his Australian Open crown and playing in tournaments in the United States because he refused to have a Covid-19 vaccination.
Despite conceding he is far from his best form, Djokovic moved well and showed more fluency with his shots as the match against world number 35 Karatsev went on.
Sterner tests are likely to await Djokovic as he looks to maintain his number one ranking by reaching the Rome semi-finals.
The five-time champion will face either fellow Serb Laslo Djere or Swiss three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka, who won his first tour match in 15 months on Monday, in the last 16.
The Masters 1000 event in the Italian capital concludes on Sunday, a week before the French Open starts at Roland Garros.
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