"We were favourites, so like you said, the job had to be done and that's what we did," Herbert, one of the world's top- ranked doubles players, said.
In Melbourne, home pair Sam Gorth and John Peers were even more dominant, beating Jan Satral and Jiri Vesely 6-3 6-2 6-2.
Australia will play the United States or Switzerland in the next round while France will face either Canada or Britain.
The remaining six ties will be decided over the weekend. The U.S. are 2-0 up against Switzerland while Canada are level at 1-1 with Britain in Ottawa.
Champions Argentina are 2-0 down at home to Italy and need a huge comeback to avoid giving up their crown at the first hurdle.
Belgium and Croatia, and Spain and Germany, were both tied at 1-1 after Friday's singles rubbers, while Serbia, who have Novak Djokovic in tbeir team, lead Russia 2-0.
(Reporting by Andrew Downie, editing by Ed Osmond)
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