Croatian 16-year-old ready to take on Murray

(Reuters) - It will be a battle of U.S. Open junior champions past and present when Andy Murray faces 16-year-old Borna Coric in Britain's opening singles rubber against Croatia in a World Group playoff tie on Friday. Coric, who lifted the boys trophy at Flushing Meadows last week, will get a glimpse of what a launch pad winning the U.S. Open junior title can be when he faces Wimbledon champion Murray in Umag. On paper a match between world number three Murray, who captured the boys crown in New York in 2004, and a teenage tyro who has never played a best of five-set match looks like a mismatch but Coric is relishing the opportunity. "I don't think I can win - only if he injures himself," London-based Coric told the BBC about his debut match in the team event. "It's going to be tough. "It's unbelievable to play for my country. When I was eight or nine we won the Davis Cup - I was watching on the TV and hoping one day I'm going to play there." Coric was brought into the Croatia squad because number one Marin Cilic and third-ranked Ivo Karlovic were unavailable. The claycourt tie takes place from Friday to Sunday, with the winning country qualifying for the World Group. (Writing by Pritha Sarkar in London, editing by Tony Jimenez)