Zheng Qinwen recovered from a “stupid mistake” to begin her Australian Open bid with a straight-sets win on a rainy first day in Melbourne.

Chinese fifth seed Zheng, who was beaten by Aryna Sabalenka in the final last year, won 7-6 (7-3), 6-1 against Romanian qualifier Anca Todoni under the Rod Laver Arena roof.

The Olympic gold medalist served 5-4 and 40-0 in the opening set, but was unable to take any of her three set points.

The 20-year-old Todoni had never beaten a top-50 opponent and had a chance to pull off a surprise victory midway through after scoring three set points off Zheng’s serve at 6-5.

But she couldn’t convert and Zheng, 22, held before stepping up a gear in the tie-break.

The second set was more straightforward as Zheng, supported as usual by a large number of Chinese fans, took an early lead before going on to win.

“The first set is always not easy, especially because I made stupid mistakes – I don’t know what happened,” she said.

“But I’m glad I got through.”

On the rising expectations after winning the Olympic title, she added: “Of course the pressure increases, but (the fans) push me to become a better person and a better athlete.”

“I like to play with pressure. As Billie Jean King says: Pressure is a privilege. I love that phrase.”

“Let’s keep going and play with pressure.”

While Zheng was able to finish her match indoors, a severe thunderstorm caused play on the outdoor courts to be suspended until 5:00 p.m. local time (06:00 GMT).