If Andy Murray were not leading the British charge at a grand slam tournament, a familiar pall would hang over proceedings, once the norm for the travelling representatives of a tennis nation not so much starved of success as incapable of even remembering it.

So, his opening match against Nick Kyrgios here on day two of the 2015 US Open carries its usual significance. If he were to lose we would be spirited back to pre-Murray expectations, relying on estimable but lesser players to retrieve something from the wreckage.

At these championships, those joining the world No3 in the campaign on Tuesday are a disparate and interesting bunch. There is James Ward, struggling to revive the flicker of form he showed at Wimbledon, and who will do well to get past the 30th seed, Thomaz Bellucci.

Aljaz Bedene, the Slovenian-born British citizen of four months standing who could yet challenge Ward for a Davis Cup place if an appeal to the ITF is successful, is playing well and is good enough to beat the unpredictable Ernests Gulbis. Laura Robson, meanwhile, looks fitter than she did even before her enforced absence of 17 months with wrist problems, and, although short of match time, might give the Russian Elena Vesnina some quality grief with her booming ground strokes and dangerous serve.

Directly below Robson in that quarter – and a potential third-round opponent – Johanna Konta comes to the main draw with 13 wins on the spin since losing to the absent Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon, form that ought to be too much for the American wildcard Louisa Chirico. But her ambitions of going further might be dampened if No9 seed and Wimbledon finalist Garbiñe Muguruza goes through, as expected, against the German Karina Witthoeft. Gone after day one is Heather Watson, who struck 34 unforced errors losing in two tight sets to the young American Lauren Davis.

So, realistic hopes remain with Murray. He is in the most consistent form of his life, his victory over Novak Djokovic in Montreal breaking a depressing sequence of eight losses to the world No1 since he beat him to win Wimbledon in 2013. Their history could not be more intertwined.

It was here in the windy September before that victory that Murray announced his arrival, managing chronic back pain and not a little self-doubt, and proving too stubborn and clever over five sets in the final.

The Rogers Cup final win this month was crucial. It returned Murray to some sort of parity with the best player in the world, the favourite here again even if he showed physical frailty in Cincinnati, nursing a sore shoulder then requiring treatment to what appeared to be strained stomach muscles. Murray, however, has no obvious problems going into a match that should test his nerve as well as his patience, against probably the most talked-about rebel since John McEnroe.

“It’s the most that I’ve played coming into a US Open probably in my life,” Murray said. “I feel very good in my game, I’ve played enough – but then I’ve no idea how I’ll feel in 10 days time or if I’m in the middle of a fifth set with Nick.

“But I planned and prepared for this to be the case with the US Open and the Davis Cup being my priorities over the next couple of months and planned accordingly with the physical team as to what I’d be doing off the court, making sure I got enough rest in and everything else. I’ve had to change some things but I feel good.”

Kyrgios looks relaxed and confident – at least on the surface – after shipping more flak than a B-52 bomber. “I’m feeling pretty good. Having Lleyton [Hewitt] on court has helped me a lot,” he told reporters in the players’ garden. “I’ve been practising well and I feel like I’m playing some really good tennis.”

He acknowledges that Murray – one of the few players or commentators not riding the young Australian too hard for his recent on-court misdemeanours – represents a serious challenge. “He’s probably playing the best tennis of his life, winning Montreal and losing to Federer last week, pretty tight,” said Kyrgios, who will face the Scot in Tuesday’s first night match at the Arthur Ashe stadium. “He’s one of the best players in the world at the moment. But I just have to go out there and play the right style of game, and believe I can win.”

While his character flaws have exposed a raw, naive young athlete, the Australian’s swagger has never wavered. Nor has Murray’s, even though he carries more psychic tics, perhaps. He observed that in previous campaigns here, he had not always had the court time he would have liked: “I have come in before having hardly played at all and not felt great at the beginning of the tournament,” he said, “quite nervous and a bit agitated because I knew that I hadn’t played loads.” Not only has Murray played loads, he has played loads of great tennis. He should win in four sets.