The Belgian world number one, favourite to win a third Grand Slam with 2003 champion Serena Williams out injured, took just 46 minutes to overwhelm her Australian wildcard opponent, ranked 869 places below her.

Henin, who won the French and U.S. Open titles last year, looked razor-sharp from the start at Rod Laver Arena, wrapping up the first set in 21 minutes with a superb serve-and-volley point.

The second set followed the same pattern until Lukaszewicz forced four break points to avoid a whitewash at 3-0 down.

But each time Henin produced an answer, to the disappointment of the Melbourne crowd.

The 21-year-old Henin, a semi-finalist last year, saved two more break points in her next service game and double-faulted on her first match point but closed out the proceedings on her second, forcing Lukaszewicz into a wild backhand.