Among the few positives Dinara Safina could take from a sloppy performance and narrowly averting an epic first-round upset at the US Open was that her brother had the same start to his Open title run.

World No 1 Safina, still seeking her first Grand Slam crown, outlasted 167th-ranked Australian teen Olivia Rogowska 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday, doing nothing to justify her lofty ranking.