The German saw off French wildcard Lucas Pouille, who made the last four in 2019 before losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena.
It put him into round two at Melbourne Park for a ninth straight year, setting up a meeting next with Spain’s 44th-ranked Pedro Martinez.
Zverev was never troubled by the 103rd-ranked Pouille, breaking for 3-2 and never looking back in the first set, sealing it with a cross-court forehand.
He worked another break on Pouille’s first service game in the second set to dial up the pressure as errors began creeping into the Frenchman’s game.
That was enough to secure the set before he earned a match-winning break at 3-3 in the third to romp home, slamming down his 18th ace to complete the win, cracking 40 winners.
“He is definitely better than his ranking,” said Zverev, who also made the semis in 2020.
“He is a great player. I wish him health. He is definitely going to be back up the rankings very soon.”
The 27-year-old came into the new season full of confidence after claiming the Rome and Paris Masters 1000 titles in recent months that propelled him to a career-high ranking.
But a Grand Slam has remained elusive for nearly a decade, with runner-up finishes at the 2020 US Open and French Open last year his best efforts so far.
Should he finally triumph in Melbourne on his 36th Slam appearance, Zverev will go joint second on the Open-era list alongside Stan Wawrinka of most attempts before winning a Grand Slam title.
Goran Ivanisevic holds the record, winning Wimbledon in 2001 on his 48th attempt.
© 2025 AFP