Murray didn't have it all his own way against qualifier Prodon in his first match at this year's French Open but the British number one played solidly when it mattered the most and came through in straight sets 6-4 6-1 6-3.

Murray admitted after the match that it was not as easy as the scoreline would suggest.

"It was a tough match, there was no rhythm really to the match." said Murray. "He didn't want to have any long rallies so he was hitting a lot of drop shots.

"He changed the rhythm and the pace of the ball a lot, so I was finding it tough and was annoyed with the way I was moving.

"I was told going in he's very unpredictable. That's why it was a difficult match and just a quite frustrating one to play, because even though I was in front, all of the points were just really scrappy until the end when I went behind."

Murray will now face Italian Simon Bolelli in the second round.

Fifth-seed Robin Soderling of Sweden joins Murray in the second round, although last year's beaten finalist was made to work much harder to secure his place.

Soderling needed four sets to see off the challenge of American Ryan Harrison 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-5.

Other winners on Monday included Jurgen Melzer of Austria, Fernando Verdasco of Spain, American Sam Querrey and Frenchman Gilles Simon.

The day's notable upset occurred when eleventh seed Nicolas Almagro was dispatched by Lukasz Kubot of Poland in five sets 3-6 2-6 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.