SCOTLAND have been drawn against New Zealand, Guernsey and Seychelles in Group C when the team event kicks off the 11-day badminton competition at the Commonwealth Games tomorrow.
But while the Scots, who are fifth seeds, will be confident of reaching the knockout quarter-final stages of the team event, the draw for the individual events has produced mixed fortunes.
Second seed Kirsty Gilmour has a first-round bye in the women's singles and should not be tested until she faces New Zealand's sixth seed Michelle Chan in the quarter-finals.
But it is a different story in the women's doubles where Gilmour and Imogen Bankier face a tough start against England's fourth seeds Gabby Adcock and Lauren Smith in the pick of the first-round matches.
Third seeds Bankier and Robert Blair, who defeated Chris and Gabby Adcock on the way to the Yonex German title, have been drawn in the same half as the Hong Kong Open Superseries winners and are on course to meet in the semi-finals.
In the men's singles Kieran Merrilees is eighth seed and begins against Richard Cribb of Norfolk Island. But his GB training partner Rajiv Ouseph, England's 2010 silver medallist, is likely to bar Merrilees' path in the quarter-finals.
In the men's doubles Martin Campbell and Patrick MacHugh begin against Afjan Rasheed and Nasheau Sharafuddeen of the Maldives in the second round before a likely contest with Australian fourth seeds Robin Middleton and Ross Smith in the last 16.
Blair and Paul Van Rietvelde also start with a bye before their first big test should come against Canadian fifth seeds Adrian Liu and Derrick Ng. Van Rietvelde also faces Liu in the mixed doubles. He and Jillie Cooper take on the Canadian and his partner Michelle Li in the first round with Singapore's second seeds Danny Chrisnanta and Vanessa Neo awaiting the winners in the second round.
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