Andy Murray is eager to get down to the business of trying to hold on to his US Open tennis title.
The Scot was back at the scene of his first Grand Slam triumph a year ago as the draw was made for this year’s tournament, which begins at Flushing Meadows on Monday.
Murray arrived in New York last Friday and cannot wait for his first match, which will pit him against 33-year-old French serve-volleyer Michael Llodra.
Murray is the holder of two of the four Grand Slams having added the Wimbledon title to his collection last month, but defending one will be something new.
The 26-year-old said: “This week has been a bit busier than normal there’s been a few more demands on my time. I’m looking forward to it. I want the tournament to get started now.”
Murray’s first week looks relatively comfortable, with Llodra, who he has beaten in all three previous meetings, followed by either Victor Hanescu of Romania or Argentina’s Leonardo Mayer, while Juan Monaco, Andreas Seppi and Nicolas Almagro are the seeds standing in his path to the quarter-finals.
A potential last-eight encounter against fifth seed Tomas Berdych, who beat Murray in Cincinnati last week, will certainly not be easy while the Scot was drawn in the same half as top seed Novak Djokovic.
Second sed Rafael Nadal looks to have the trickiest path of all the contenders, including a potential quarter-final against seventh seed Roger Federer.
Djokovic begins against talented Ricardas Berankis and also has a tough-looking quarter that includes Lukas Rosol, Grigor Dimi-trov, Tommy Haas and Juan Martin del Potro.
Laura Robson is the first British woman to be seeded at a Grand Slam since Jo Durie at the 1987 Australian Open.
The 30th seed will meet Spaniard Lourdes Dominguez Lino first.
British number two Heather Watson, who is still struggling for form after recovering from glandular fever, will play Romanian 21st seed Simona Halep.
Top seed Williams plays former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone in the first round and has fellow American Sloane Stephens, who beat her at the Australian Open, as a possible fourth-round opponent.