The late lunch brigade have arrived. Kuznetsov pauses as the bloated-stomach stragglers amble in and try to find their seats. One of the great Roland Garros traditions right there...

Silky. Big first serve down the middle, followed up by a deft drop-shot which the slightly lumbering Kuznetsov cannot reach. Muzza in command at 40-15, should be a straightforward hold from here. Right? Yep.

Image source, Reuters

Barry Flatman
Sunday Times tennis correspondent on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

Kuvnetsov has got into this match very early and is hitting some good forehands.

Murray sniffs half a chance at 30-30, helped by a double fault by Kuznetsov.

The Russian whacks a deep forehand that even Murray can't retrieve for 40-30, only for another unforced error to take game quatre into deuce.

Then Kuznetsov starts revving up his forehand, Murray having no answer to his power as the world number 73 holds.

* denotes next server

Piers Newbery
BBC Sport in Paris

There was an air of expectancy around the stadium when Murray fell 0-40 down in the first game - in this strangest of French Opens it would not come as a great surprise to many if we lost both the men's and women's top seeds in the first round for the first time ever.

Meanwhile, Fabrice Santoro - ex-player and former favourite of Murray, now tournament MC - strolls cheerfully past us in the stands, doubtless thinking up some wacky quips for the post-match interviews.

No great drama for Murray in his second service game. He pounds the Russian's defence with some hefty shots, prodding and probing both sides, forcing Kuznetsov into errors.

A love to hold. Exactly what the tennis doctor ordered.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Andy Murray is not the only Briton who will be on court this afternoon.

British number two Kyle Edmund will be out shortly against Portugal's Gastao Elias. His match is next up on Court 14, after the conclusion of the match between Barbora Strycova and Alison Riske.

That match is currently 5-2 in the first set so expect Edmo to be out in around an hour.

Let's see what Andrey Kuznetsov has got in his locker then.

I'm not having the Russian's gear today. Board shorts and bright yellow socks. I'm a traditionalist...

Thankfully for the world number 73, his service game is better than his dress sense. Murray tries to lure him towards the net early doors, but Kuznetsov doesn't bite.

A couple of forehand winners put him in command at 30-15, Murray losing the game when he does bring his opponent forward but lands a high, ambitious lob past the baseline.

Image source, Reuters

Phew! No wonder Andy Murray mops his brow again at the end of this opening game.

The Scot was sweating at 0-40, but rattles off five points on the bounce - the two winning points in deuce coming on the back of excellent first serves - saving him from a shocker of a start.

Image source, Reuters

Barry Flatman
Tennis correspondent for the Sunday Times on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

If you look at Murray's face there is a look of negativity. He is ambling around between points.

Better. Much better. Andy Murray saves the first with a double-handed backhand down the line, then the second disappears with a whopper of an ace down the middle.

Another hefty first serve has Kuznetsov struggling, the Russian walloping a loose forehand closer to Row A than the sideline.

Deuce...

Image source, Reuters

Not the smooth start Andy Murray dreamed about last night. A couple of unforced errors gift a 0-30 lead to the Russian... and then another - when Murray lashes a backhand long - coughs up three break points...

Image source, Reuters

Warm up done, time for a last gulp of water. And a mop of the brow.

Gentle applause as Murray jogs to his end with a couple of balls in his right hand.

Here we go...

* denotes next server

Piers Newbery
BBC Sport in Paris

Can Andy Murray "rediscover the light at Roland Garros?" ponders today's programme. He has been musing on the same issue himself. "I've had some problems here and there," he says with some understatement. Still, he looked as intense as ever in his morning hit, with coaches Ivan Lendl and Jamie Delgado watching him crunch groundstrokes at Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Today could be the first day of the comeback.

I hear you Stephanie. I've got a Liam Gallagher gig to get to later...

C'mon Andy! Let's hope Muzza is 'mad fer it'.

Stephanie Siu: Really want a nice three setter Andy! Get me through the post bank holiday blues at work...

Image source, Getty Images

Muzza says he is ready to challenge for the Coupe des Mousquetaires, despite a lack of recent form and fitness.

The world number one has a relatively modest 16-7 record this year, with just five wins on clay.

And he has struggled with sickness, shingles, the flu, an elbow injury this year.

“The last few months have not been good, obviously. I haven't played well. I had a few issues as well. “I need to accept that I'm struggling and then find a way to get through it. “I will get through it. I'm sure of that. When that happens, I don't know. Hopefully it happens in a few days. Hopefully happens at this event. If it doesn't, maybe it happens during the grass.”

Bonjour! Andy Murray is back at Roland Garros for another attempt to master the famous red clay for the first time.

First up? Andrey Kuznetsov...

Both players have emerged from the locker room, warming up under some light cloud on Chatrier.

Are there any beach shops in Paris? Kuznetsov, judging by his blue and white surf shorts, appears to have found one...

How do you top that? How do you match that? With great difficulty, unsurprisingly.

The opening five months of 2017 have proved more difficult for the world's best tennis player.

A dip in form, only one title, an early exit at the Aussie Open, illness.

It turns out that, actually, Andy Murray is not super-human...

Image source, Getty Images

Andy Murray barely looked human during most of 2016. In a good way.

A Grand Slam win. An Olympic gold. A World Tour Finals triumph. Two more Slam showpieces. Six other titles. Oh, and a world number one ranking.

In tennis terms, Muzza was almost as durable and indestructible as RoboCop.