Andy Murray to play German teenager Alexander Zverev in Australian Open first round

Andy Murray will face German teenager Alexander Zverev in the first round of the Australian Open. The British number one is a four-time runner-up at the event and will begin his effort to finally win the grand slam against the 18-year-old right-hander.

Murray, 28, has been named as the number two seed at this year's tournament and has been placed in the same half of the draw as Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal of Spain. He will, however, first have to overcome Zverev, who is considered to be one of the sport's rising stars.

The young German is currently ranked 83rd in the world and last year beat world number 12 Kevin Anderson in Washington. But he has never progressed past the second round of a Grand Slam.
Fellow Briton Kyle Edmund is to play Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia-Herzegovina in the first round in Melbourne.

Elsewhere, world number one and pre-tournament favourite Novak Djokovic has been drawn against South Korea's Hyeon Chung, while Roger Federer has been pitted against Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia. Nadal, on the other hand, will face fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco in the first round of the Australian Open, which begins on 18 January.

In the women's draw, defending champion Serena Williams has been handed a tough tie against Italy's Camila Giorgi, who is the highest-ranked unseeded player in the tournament. Russian star Maria Sharapova has been drawn against Nao Hibino of Japan, while Agnieszka Radwanska will face American Christina McHale.

Meanwhile, Britain's Heather Watson has been drawn against Timea Babos of Hungary in the first grand slam of 2016.