Great Britain and Ireland lead Continental Europe 3½-1½ after day one of the Ryder Cup-style Team Cup at Abu Dhabi Golf Resort.

The three-day competition is designed to give Europe captain Luke Donald a look at some of the players in contention for September’s Ryder Cup match against the United States in New York.

Donald said on the eve of the event that it is of “massive importance”, while players from both sides were subjected to chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A” over the PA system during practise days in preparation for what is expected to be a hostile crowd at Bethpage.

“What we did, a bit of razzmatazz on a few certain holes was a unique way to practise,” said GB&I playing captain Justin Rose, a veteran of six Ryder Cups as a player.

“That was something that I wasn’t really privy to until this week because I felt like that was very much a Bethpage 2025 protocol, not necessarily Team Cup protocol.

“But using this event is an amazing opportunity to expose the players to different ways to practise.”

Francesco Molinari, who has three appearances as a Ryder Cup player, is Continental Europe’s playing captain and, like Rose, paired himself with a player hoping to make a debut in New York. But both ended up losing their opening fourball matches.

Rose and fellow Englishman Matt Wallace were beaten 3&1 in the top match as French duo Matthieu Pavon and Romain Langasque secured the first point.

Molinari, playing with resurgent fellow Italian Matteo Manassero, suffered the biggest defeat of the session, beaten 4&2 by Tommy Fleetwood and Aaron Rai, who has climbed to number 22 in the world after winning his first PGA Tour event last August.

Fleetwood was playing-captain of the GB&I side in 2023 when this event was resurrected with the aim of helping Europe regain the Ryder Cup in Rome later that year.

Tyrrell Hatton and Northern Ireland’s Tom McKibbin, the only non-Englishman in the 10-man GB&I team – and a man rumoured to be joining Hatton on the LIV Golf circuit – defeated French pair Antoine Rozner and Julien Guerrier 3&2.

Rose accepted it was a happy coincidence that Hatton and McKibbin ended up playing together, rather than because of the reports in the media.

“Statistically, there’s a huge influence how we match players up and pairings up and things like that,” the 44-year-old told BBC Sport.

“That one kind of fell into place to be fair without any other agenda.”

Should McKibbin join LIV, he will lose the PGA Tour card he won by finishing in the top 10 eligible spots on last season’s DP World Tour Race to Dubai.

He just edged out Jordan Smith, who is also part of the the GB&I team this week. However, because the cut-off for PGA Tour membership registrations was on 31 December, Smith, who finished in 11th spot, would be unable to take the card.

However, Smith told BBC Sport there were no ill feelings between them.

“I didn’t have a card and I don’t have a card so it doesn’t change anything for me,” he said.

“Tom’s got to look after himself. We’ve been getting on great. We’re playing darts together, we’re having dinner together, we could even play [golf] together. That would be absolutely fine.”

Smith and Laurie Canter beat Rasmus Hojgaard and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen by one hole in their match, while Matthew Jordan and Paul Waring picked up a half point in their tied match against Thorbjorn Olesen and Niklas Norgaard.

Referring to those two matches that were the only ones to go down the 18th, Rose told BBC Sport: “There were some nice moments because if they go the wrong way it changes the whole complexion of the day, so the team closed it out nicely.”

All 20 players are in action in all sessions across the three days with Saturday featuring two sessions of alternate shot foursomes with 10 singles to follow Sunday.

With 25 points to be won, the first team to 13 claim the trophy.

Continental Europe 1½-3½ Great Britain and Ireland

Pavon & Langasque beat Rose & Wallace 3&1

Hojgaard & Neergaard-Petersen lost to Smith & Canter 1UP

Rozner & Guerrier lost to Hatton & McKibbin 3&2

Olesen & Norgaard tied with Jordan & Waring

Molinari & Manassero lost to Fleetwood & Rai 4&2