Andy Murray Thanasi Kokkinakis
Murray and Thanasi Kokkinakis meet in round one on 18 September Getty

Great Britain take on Australia in the semi-finals of the Davis Cup with Andy Murray and Dan Evans preparing to take on Thanasi Kokkinakis and Bernard Tomic respectively in the opening rounds on Friday 18 September.

Where to watch

Murray v Kokkinakis will be available to watch live on BBC Two from 1pm (BST) with live coverage also available via the BBC Sport website. You can also tune into watch Evans v Tomic immediately after their match finishes.

Preview

Murray will once again spearhead Great Britain's efforts to win their first Davis Cup since 1936 against 29-time champions Australia. The world no.3 sparked fears over whether he would be ready to compete after pulling out of the Davis Cup's official dinner on Wednesday 16 September but practised as per usual the next day ahead of the draw, as reported by the Daily Mail.

Typically, it was him who led the charge in July's quarter-final victory over France, coming from a set down to defeat Gilles Simon in a gruelling encounter that sealed the win for Britain. On that occasion, Murray was put through the paces on all three match days. Murray has had little let up since, enduring a hugely demanding season on clay that told in his US Open campaign, which ended in a fourth-round defeat to South Africa's Kevin Anderson.

Testing him will be 19-year-old Kokkinakis. The world no.72 may not have been welcomed to Glasgow with open arms ("Look, no disrespect to Scotland, but I don't think I'll be getting there too early," he commented earlier this month) but he will be looking to mark his breakthrough year in style against Murray. The teenager only lost to eventual winner Novak Djokovic at the French Openin June, but his name was thrown about for the wrong reasons a couple of months later when Nick Kyrgios alleged the Kokkinakis has slept with Donna Vekic, girlfriend of Stan Wawrinka in those ugly scenes at the Montreal Masters. To his credit, Kokkinakis distanced himself from the furore.

In Kokkinakis, Murray has found a protégé of sorts. "Andy has been huge for me. I got in touch with him around Aussie Open time and we had a good practice session, a long practice session before the tournament, and since than he has been very supportive," Kokkinakis told ESPN. "He gave me his number and said: 'Let me know if there is anything you need with regards to training, or if there is anything that I can help you with.' He's been good. He enables me to practise on bigger courts, which is good."

The Aussie wowed Murray during practice sessions at Roland Garros and in their first official meeting on the court, will be looking to do the same in Murray's own back garden.

Betting odds

Andy Murray 1/20 v Thasi Kokkinakis 9/1 (via Sky Bet)

Head-to-head

N/A