French Open 2010: Draw Announced

While Roger Federer is the defending champion at the French Open this year, it seems unlikely that he will retain the crown, given a look at the draw that was announced in Paris today. That being said, Federer has consistently proven speculation such as this wrong, time and again, and the 2010 French Open might prove to be no exception.

Here is how the top four fared in the draws, with the top contenders in their quarter of the draws.

Roger Federer
Federer, being the defending champion and the top seed, is in the top quarter of the top half of the draw, along with big names like Stanislas Wawrinka, Gael Monfils, Marin Cilic, Ernest Gulbis, Albert Montanes, Feliciano Lopez, and Robin Soderling among the seeded players, and Janko Tipsarevic, Oliver Rocchus, and Taylor Dent among the unseeded. Getting through to the quarter finals might be a task in itself, given Federer's poor run on clay. And if he reaches there, he will most probably play Robin Soderling, the man who stopped Rafael Nadal from getting his 5th Roland Garros trophy in a row, knocking him out in the fourth round last year. So Federer has got his work cut out for him, and his many fans will hope against hope that he can repeat his performance from last year.

Federer plays Aussie Peter Luczak in the first round on Sunday.

Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal, the number two seed and winner of four consecutive French Open titles, is in the bottom quarter of the bottom half of the draw, and will be looking to avenge his 2009 loss to Soderling. Nadal has an easier draw than Federer, with probably Fernando Verdasco being his toughest opponent on paper. But with names like Verdasco, Phillip Kohlschrieber, Fernando Gonzalez, Ivan Lubicic, Thomas Bellucci, and Lleyton Hewitt among the seeds, and given his recent problems with his fitness and knee injuries, Nadal will also have his work cut out for him. However, his confidence will be big after winning the tournaments leading up to the French Open, and truth be told, he is the favorite to win the 2010 title.

Nadal plays Gianni Mina of France in the first round.

Novak Djokovic
With the number one and two players having seemingly difficult roads to the quarter finals, let's see how the middle two quarters of the draw fared. In the top quarter of the bottom half of the draw, we have the young Serb Novak Djokovic, and the US catapult Andy Roddick. With most of the big names already out of the way in other parts of the draw, this quarter is relatively easy, and might well come down to the Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic quarter final clash. However, it is not advisable to put off players like Jarkko Nieminen, David Ferrer, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Sam Querrey, and Victor Hanescu who can make the going tough for Djokovic and Roddick.

Novak Djokovic plays Evgeny Korolev of Kazakhstan in the first round.

Andy Murray
In the bottom quarter of the top half of the draw, we have another serious contender for the title in Andy Murray. Widely considered as the best player to never win a Grand Slam, Murray will want to set the record right. However, the road might not be easy for him either, with names like Richard Gasquet, Paul-Henri Mathieu, Marcos Baghdatis, John Isner, Tomas Berdych, Mikhail Youzhny, Tommy Robredo, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all in his quarter of the draw. If he gets through to the quarters, he will most probably face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Though he is playing the best tennis of his career according to many, winning the French Open 2010 might just be a little difficult for him.

Andy Murray plays Richard Gasquet for France in the first round, a tough match that may well decide the outcome of this quarter of the draw.

This was how the 2010 French Open Men's Draw looks like. With Roger Federer and Andy Murray seemingly having the toughest draws, it seems likely that French Open specialist Rafael Nadal will win yet another French Open title. However, nothing in tennis goes according to script, and the 2010 French Open will see some of the best action in tennis from some of the best players in tennis.

The 2010 French Open starts 23rd May. Stay Tuned.