Djokovic was given an early shock by the 19-year-old wildcard, who was making his grand slam debut, before the 10-time champion settled in for a 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-2 victory.
The super Serb admitted his young rival was the better player in the early exchanges.
"Huge credit to him for stepping out in his debut in a grand slam, first time on a big court, playing the way he did play," Djokovic said of Basavareddy.
"As far as my performance, I think I didn't start really well and I was probably a bit too passive from back of the court and he was dictating the play.
"I served well, some shots in the game worked well in certain moments, in certain moments they didn't.Â
"It was kind of up and down but I ended the match in a good fashion. I think that it's important as it counts mentally for me, for the rest of the tournament."
Tennis IQ off the charts 💯 Djokovic x Murray— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) #KiaAustralia • #AustralianOpen • #KiaEVrange pic.twitter.com/Jp1uzkNcpxJanuary 13, 2025
Most fans at Melbourne Park on Monday night were expecting the world No.7 to romp through the match but the Californian kid decided to do things his way.
Basavareddy broke Djokovic to take a 4-3 lead in the first set, then wrapped it up inside 50 minutes.
The last time Djokovic lost a first set at the Australian Open was in 2006 to Paul Goldstein.
The 37-year-old let out a mighty roar when he finally broke his young rival to take a 5-3 lead in the second set, wresting back control of the match.
"I played a great game, a crucial break, and I started to switch the momentum to my side," he said.
Basavareddy, the former Stanford college student who only turned professional late last year and has had a meteoric rise up the rankings to world No.107, needed treatment between sets after suffering leg cramps.
Novak Djokovic compliments grand slam newcomer Nishesh Basavareddy after their first round match. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)
But he continued to play without fear, pushing Djokovic to make unforced errors which tallied an uncharacteristic 41 by the end of the match.
Djokovic is bidding to win his 25th grand slam title and claim sole ownership of the record for most singles major titles, ahead of Australian great Margaret Court.
Djokovic will next face Portuguese qualifier Jaime Faria.
While he could be seen remonstrating at his box as he walked to the net after the win, he praised the input of long-time rival and now new coach Andy Murray.
"It's still that initial period of getting to know each other," Djokovic said.
"There's a lot of communication but at times it's not necessary for us to exchange words because we just look at each other and we know what happened on the court, whether it's in the match or in the practice session set.
"He's constantly supportive and encouraging me, he's putting a lot of energy into trying to make me feel good on the court and I think that's what I need.
"I was looking for that extra motivation and I definitely have it with Andy."
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