Serbia's Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine during the ATP Tennis Open tournament at the Foro Italico in Rome. Pic/AFP

Former world number one Novak Djokovic said Monday he felt reassured to be back playing on the familiar red clay of Rome as he dispatched Alexandr Dolgopolov in straight sets in the first round. The 12-time Grand Slam champion, who won the last of his 68 ATP titles at the Canadian Open in 2016, has slipped to 18th in the world, his lowest ranking in 12 years as he struggles with a nightmare elbow injury. But he got off to a comfortable start in his bid for a fifth ATP Italian Open title at the Foro Italico, taking 55 minutes to oust Ukrainian Dolgopolov in the first round. "Rome has always been a place where I felt good, where I received a lot of support, where I played well, and had a lot of great results," said Djokovic. "And today's match encourages me and gives me reason to believe that it can be a good week for me.