Three time champions Iran began their 2015 AFC Asian Cup campaign with a 2-0 victory over Bahrain in Melbourne in a Group C match on Sunday night.
The Iranians, Asia's best performed team at last year's World Cup, grabbed the lead in first half injury time from full-back Ehsan Hajsafi and doubled their lead through forward Masoud Shojaei in the second half.
Carlos Queiroz's side had the majority of possession and chances and could have won by a more comfortable margin.
Former Fulham star Ashkan Dejagah missed a golden opportunity to put Team Melli ahead in the 20th minute. But the winger spurned the chance as he went one-on-one with Bahrain goalkeeper Sayed Jaffer.
But in time added-on before the break, Iran took a well deserved lead after Hajsafi's left-footed shot beat Bahrain goalkeeper Jaffer.
Iran looked to put the game out of Bahrain's reach early in the second half and had several chances to score.
But they were almost caught by Bahrain's Nigerian-born striker Jaycee John in the 58th minute. The 29-year-old forward unleashed a thunderbolt from outside the box that was parried away by Iran custodian Reza Haghighi.
However, in the 71st minute, Iran took the sting out of the Bahraini resistance with a goal by Masoud Shojaei. From the Andranik Teymourian corner, the former Osasuna winger mis-hit his shot but it was good enough to beat Jaffer.
Meanwhile, two goals each from Ahmed Khalil and Ali Mabkhout helped United Arab Emirates to a 4-1 win over Qatar in Canberra in another Group C match.
The Qataris are reigning Gulf Cup champions but they were stunned by a strong comeback by the UAE, who found the net three times after half-time.
Former Asian Player of the Year Khalfan Ibrahim opened the scoring with a lob from the edge of the area to give Qatar the lead midway through the first half.
Nine minutes before the break, Khalil equalised after the clearance from his goal-bound header bounced back off his chest and into the net.
Khalil put UAE ahead seven minutes after half-time, curling a free kick past Qasem Burhan. Mabkhout extended the lead with well-taken goals in the 56th and 89th minutes.
The UAE will remain in Canberra to take on Bahrain on Thursday, with Qatar facing Iran in Sydney on the same day.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report