Rome - Roger Federer opened his clay-court season with a doubles victory on Monday at the Rome Masters.
The top-ranked player paired with Swiss Davis Cup teammate Yves Allegro to beat Johan Brunstrom of Sweden and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands Antilles 6-4 7-6 (4).
Federer never dropped his serve and showed off effective volleying skills in his first match inside the new 10 500-seat stadium at the Foro Italico.
Federer and Allegro will next face sixth-seeded Simon Aspelin of Sweden and Paul Hanley of Australia.
In singles, Federer will open against 40th-ranked Ernests Gulbis on Tuesday.