GB land Ukraine cup tie

Great Britain will face Ukraine at home in Europe/Africa Zone Group I of the Davis Cup next year.

John Lloyd's side were included among the seeded nations for Tuesday's draw in Madrid, giving them a bye past the first round of ties to be staged in March.

They will face the Ukraine, ranked 41 in the world, on May 8-10 in the hope of moving towards an immediate return to the elite level of the competition.

Britain were relegated from the World Group on Saturday following a 3-2 defeat by Austria at Wimbledon.

World number four Andy Murray won both his matches but the team's lack of depth was exposed with Alex Bogdanovic losing two rubbers, including the decider against Alex Peya.

The doubles pairing of Jamie Murray and Ross Hutchins also came up short as Britain crashed to an embarrassing defeat which sees them slip to 24th in the rankings.

The result has increased pressure on team captain Lloyd, who drew criticism for his decision not to select Andy Murray to play in Saturday's doubles.

Disappointing attendance figures throughout the tie and team morale have also been questioned.

The challenge facing Lloyd is to convince Murray, who reached the final of the US Open earlier this month, to continue playing for Britain.

Murray reconfirmed his commitment to the Davis Cup immediately after the defeat by Austria but may decide it will harm his chances of winning a first grand slam.