Stan Wawrinka says his recent form has shown him he can beat anyone when he is playing well. The Swiss recently claimed his third Grand Slam at the US Open and made his return to the court on Wednesday, as he defeated Lukas Rosol 6-3 6-1 in the second round of the St Petersburg Open.

He will next play the winner of the all-Serbian clash between Dusan Lajovic and Viktor Troicki, with Troicki the 1.33 favourite to win ahead of his compatriot who is priced at 3.00.

Top seed Wawrinka looks the man to beat in St Petersburg though, with defending champion Milos Raonic and Tomas Berdych also in attendance.

The 31-year-old has visibly grown in confidence since breaking his Grand Slam duck at the 2014 Australian Open, going on to win the 2015 French Open before his recent triumph in New York.

He will now have an eye on the end of season ATP World Tour Finals before looking to hit the ground running again in 2017 in the build-up to the opening major of the year in Melbourne.

After coming through his tricky opener against Rosol, the world number three admitted he felt comfortable in Russia’s second city, especially as he believes he has the ability to beat anyone in the world when on form.

“I’m happy with my preparation for this tournament,” he said. “I played at a good level for a first match, especially against Rosol, a player against whom I’ve played close matches this year.

“I was trying to make him uncomfortable by mixing the speed of my shots since he likes having a rhythm. I’m surprised with how well things went, but when I play well I know I can beat anyone.”