Defending champion Shaun Murphy made a winning start to his UK Championship campaign on Saturday night.

Murphy was not at his best against Gerard Greene but managed to eke out a 9-5 victory at the Telford International Centre, finishing off in style with two back-to-back frame-winning breaks of 88.

The 27-year-old Englishman beat Hong Kong cueman Marco Fu 10-9 in an epic final last year which finished after midnight.

He is bidding to become just the third man to successfully defend the UK title, after Stephen Hendry and Steve Davis.

Hendry was the last to achieve the feat, winning consecutive titles in 1994, 1995 and 1996, however the tournament has seen seven different winners in the last seven years.

Northern Irishman Greene took the final frame of the afternoon session with a gutsy break of 96 after a re-rack, giving him a glimmer of hope, and he had his moments during the evening.

But ultimately Murphy's class told. Murphy made the only century of the match, when he compiled a run of 101 in the fifth frame, and could face Ding Junhui in a mouthwatering second-round clash.

First round: Maguire bt
Holt 9-6; King bt Hamilton 9-2; Bingham bt Perry 9-4; Ebdon bt Trump 9-4; Selby bt Cope 9-8; Wenbo bt Day 9-3.