Andy Murray has been drawn against big-serving Dutchman Robin Haase in the first round of the Australian Open.

Murray had to fight back from two sets to love down to Haase at the 2011 US Open before edging a five-set epic.

Currently ranked 54 in the world, Haase hits the ball hard and flat on both flanks and he represents a tough opening challenge for Murray.

The good news for Murray is that he has been drawn in the same half of the draw as Roger Federer rather than Djokovic - which means he is seeded to face the Swiss veteran rather than the world No 1 in the semi-finals.

Provided Murray sees off Haase, he should have an easy passage to the fourth round. He will face either Portugal's Joao Sousa or local wildcard John-Patrick Smith in the second round and Florian Mayer, the German veteran, is his likely third round opponent

Then it gets harder, with either Gilles Simon or Alexandr Dolgopolov - both massively talented but equally as erratic - a potential banana skin in the fourth round.

Murray's likely quarter-final opponent is sixth seed Juan Martin del Potro, possibly the man most likely to mount a serious challenge to the top three seeds and the last man the Scot would have wanted in the last eight.

Then it should be Federer - but the No 2 seed has a horrific draw.

His first round opponent is improving Frenchman Benoit Paire, but waiting in the third round is the great Australian hope Bernard Tomic, and if he gets past that, the hulking Canadian Milos Raonic is likely to be next, followed by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarters.

Top seed and defending champion Djokovic - who beat Murray in the semi-final last year - will face Paul Henri-Mathieu, the experienced Frenchman in the first round and his first major test is likely to be Tomas Berdych in the last eight.

Full men's draw