Oxfordshire's Tim Henman faces a tough start to his Wimbledon campaign after being handed a showdown with Spaniard Alex Corretja in today's first-round draw.

The British No 1, seeded tenth, faces a player just nine places below his own 28th position in the world rankings.

Henman has reached four Wimbledon semi-finals, but his preparation has been hampered by a shoulder injury which required surgery at the end of last year.

The experienced Corretja is a former top-five player who has 17 career titles to his name.

But the Spaniard is a claycourt specialist who does not like grass, and this will be the first time for five years that he has played at Wimbledon.

Henman has met the 28-year-old from Barcelona just twice before. He lost to him 6-3, 7-5 on carpet in the Paris Indoor tournament in 1997 but then beat him 7-6, 6-7, 6-2 on hard courts in the 1998 Singles Championship in Germany.

Henman's quarter of the draw contains last year's runner-up, David Nalbandian, and big-serving Dutchman Martin Verkerk, who was the runner-up at the French Open.

British No 2 Greg Rusedski, unseeded after nine months out injured, will take on German Alexander Waske, ranked 114th, in the first round at the All England Club.