"It's an amusing draw": Murray prepares for Wawrinka challenge

Andy Murray described being drawn to face Stan Wawrinka in the French Open first round as "amusing" as he prepares to make his first appearance at Roland Garros since 2017.

Murray is one of three British stars in action on Sunday, the opening day of the competition, and the trio have each been handed tough opponents.

Along with Murray facing three-time Grand Slam winner Wawrinka, Johanna Konta is up against teenage sensation Coco Gauff and Dan Evans faces Kei Nishikori.

"It's an amusing draw. It's actually the first time I've watched the draw in the past 10 years," said Murray, whose last match on clay was a semi-final defeat at Roland Garros to Wawrinka three years ago.

"Obviously it will be a very tough match. That match I played against Stan a few years ago was a brutal one.

"I kind of knew something was up before the Kei Nishikori match in the quarter-finals.

"I didn't know that it was that bad but at the end of the Stan match, in the fifth set, I was struggling to push up on my serve and moving to my forehand.

"It never felt the same after that match."

Murray is ranked 111th in the world going into the tournament as he continues his comeback from injuries and two major surgeries in recent years, while Wawrinka begins as 16th seed.

Konta is the ninth seed in the women's draw and is preparing for her first match against 16-year-old Gauff, who stormed to the fourth round at Wimbledon last year and repeated the feat at the Australian Open in January.

Konta arrives in Paris with fond memories of her last visit, which saw her reach the semi-finals in 2019, and she believes she is "getting better each day" on clay.

Looking ahead to her clash with Gauff, Konta said: "I know she's very mature for her age. That's why she's able to compete at the level she's competing.

"She's physically and mentally mature enough to deal with the demands we have on tour. Obviously she's going to just keep getting better and better.

"I'm very clear on the fact that I'm going in playing another professional tennis player who is one of the best-ranked in the world. It doesn't matter if she's 14 or 40.

"I'm going to be playing against the tennis that she brings, not her social media following, not her persona."

Evans, meanwhile, could be forgiven for rueing his luck having seen his name come out opposite Nishikori's.

The Japanese star has reached the French Open quarter-finals on three occasions, including last year, while Evans has never won a main draw match at Roland Garros.

Nishikori's recent injury problems mean he goes into the tournament one place below the British number one in the rankings but Evans was left in no doubt as to the challenge he faces.

"No-one really needs to question his quality. It will be a difficult match," said the 30-year-old.

"I have to go out there and try my best to win the match and see what happens."

Sunday's action gets underway at approximately 10am (BST), with Evans due on court at around 12pm, Konta at 3pm and Murray at 5.30pm. Sportsbeat 2020