The inaugural event suffered its first major shock this afternoon, when a clearly off-key Djokovic was handed his ticket out of town by 20-year-old Latvian Ernests Gulbis, who triumphed 6-4 6-4 on Pat Rafter Arena.

Djokovic, the world number three and defending Australian Open champion, never came close to hitting his straps despite being one of the most consistent performers on the men's tour, with his premature departure a nightmare for tournament organisers.

Poor serving from the Serbian - he only landed 48% of his first attempts - didn't help his cause, with Djokovic saying he failed to adjust to a new brand of racquet, which he debuted for the first time in competition.

The rest of his match was played with about as much application as his laid-back nine holes of golf at inner-city course Victoria Park yesterday morning.

The 21-year-old recently switched from a Wilson racquet to rival company Head, although his less-than-glowing report on the new equipment would hardly please his new marketing directors.

"It's a pretty big change. It's something that's really necessary to be perfect for me. I like everything to be 100 per cent perfect and sometimes it's not possible," Djokovic said.

"I changed the racquet and it's not easy to get rhythm right away. It's my first match with the racquet.

"I'm under the contract so I have to play with the racquet. It's not the end of the world. It's the first match. I'm trying not to be pessimistic."

Djokovic has been hitting up with the new racquet for a number of weeks but said it performed differently under the heat of battle, especially in the face of the big-hitting Gulbis, who is ranked 53 in the world.

Gulbis, a talented basketballer and footballer who has sparred with Djokovic on regular occasions as a junior, rated the victory as one of the highlights of his fledgling career.

"It wasn't the best match but it is for sure one of my best wins," Gulbis said, grateful he didn't add another "beautiful loss" to his resume.

"That's what I'm happy about. I kept my focus. I didn't get shaky. I was serving well in the last game."

Djokovic arrived in Brisbane just days ago, spending the New Year in Monte Carlo, and the rust was still firmly in place.

He denied his Australian summer was in freefall, saying he believed he was firmly on track to defend his Open title in Melbourne in less than two weeks time.

"I'm not panicking. I'm not seriously in a big doubt. The Australian Open is my highest goal for this part of the year. I really want to play well there," Djokovic said.

"I wanted to get a couple of matches here. I didn't feel fresh on the court because I didn't get a lot of practice.

"I served really really bad. I couldn't get any rhythm there. If you don't serve well against someone like him; he's young, he's talented, he's got nothing to lose, he uses his opportunities."

Djokovic's road to Melbourne is now up in the air. He may yet play in the tournaments at Kooyong or Sydney, or opt to head straight to Melbourne and prepare on the practice court.

As for his fleeting appearance in Brisbane, Djokovic apologised for fans who had counted on seeing the Grand Slam event winner performing much later in the week.

"I feel sorry for the people who came to watch me and the fans. They don't like to see me playing like this. I regret that. But this is sport. You can't win all the time," he said.