Leon Smith appointed Britain's Davis Cup coach

British tennis officials have attempted to halt the country's international free-fall by appointing Andy Murray's former coach Leon Smith as the new captain of the Great Britain Davis Cup team on Monday.

The 34-year-old Scot, who has been a coach for 16 years and who guided Murray through the junior ranks, was most recently the LTA's head of men's player development.

He succeeds John Lloyd, who resigned following Britain's defeat by Lithuania last month.

"Leon is the perfect fit for this important role at this stage in the development of British men's tennis," the Lawn Tennis Association's player director Steven Martens said on the LTA's website (www.ita.org.uk).

"He's a young British coach full of energy and passion, who's already proved he's a quick learner, and has the respect of the players."

"This is a huge honour and an irresistible challenge for me," Smith said.

"I know the players, and I know that together we can get Britain back to winning ways in the Davis Cup."

Smith will need to get to work quickly. Britain's next Davis Cup tie is a EuropeAfrica Zone Group II playoff against Turkey at Eastbourne on July 9-11, where defeat would mean relegation to the lowest tier of the competition.

Smith will hope to persuade world number four Murray to return to action for his country against Turkey after he sat out the Lithuania tie.