OMNISPORT

Marin Cilic insists his form is as good as it has been at a grand slam this year after his win in the US Open second round.

The Croatian defending champion had no trouble getting past Evgeny Donskoy on Wednesday, beating the Russian 6-2 6-3 7-5 on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Despite reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, Cilic said his start at Flushing Meadows had him as confident as he has been in majors this year.

"I had a pretty good Wimbledon, but over there I still felt that with my tennis it was a little bit up and down," Cilic told a news conference.

"But now I'm feeling that the way I'm hitting the ball, the way I'm moving on the court, the way I'm serving, it's really satisfying. So I'm really on a good way, you know.

"You never know what can happen in next matches, but overall from this position looking into the next matches, I'm feeling pretty happy with it."

Cilic hit 39 winners on his way to victory against Donskoy, setting up a meeting with either Grigor Dimitrov or Mikhail Kukushkin in the third round.

The 26-year-old was thankful to have played under some shade thanks to the stadium's partly-constructed retractable roof.

"When you can save as much energy as possible it's always something better," Cilic said.

"The tournament is two weeks long, so you have to use every match in best possible way to keep your energy."