Brisbane, 3 January 2011 | AAP

Top seed Sam Stosur overcame early nerves and a pumped-up Czech qualifier to ease into the second round of the Brisbane International tennis tournament on Monday.

The world No.6 battled past Lucie Hradecka 7-6 6-1 in 84 minutes at Pat Rafter Arena.

But Stosur, 26, clearly had to shed rust in her first hit-out since bowing out in the WTA Championships semi-finals in Doha in October.

In contrast, world No.110 Hradecka hit centre court on an eight game winning run after winning an end-of-year ITF event and claiming three scalps to qualify in Brisbane.

French Open runner-up Stosur looked like she might lose to a player ranked outside the top 100 for the first time since the 2009 US Open when she trailed 4-1 in the first set after just 18 minutes.

But she settled her nerves and found her range, forcing a tiebreak which she claimed 7-1.

Stosur – who can return to the world top five with a semi-final appearance in Brisbane – then found another gear as she took the second set in just 27 minutes.

Meanwhile, compatriot Sophie Ferguson bowed out in the first round 6-4 6-2 to Israeli second seed Shahar Peer on Monday – making one punter very happy.

Centrebet said on Monday that someone bet $1 million on Peer at just $1.08 to beat Ferguson.

The straight sets victory ensured a payout – of just $80,000.