French Open 2017: Sunday Schedule and Predictions for Roland Garros Bracket

There's a new name at the top of the women's seedings as the 2017 French Open gets underway Sunday, and Angelique Kerber will get her first opportunity to display her worthiness as she opens the second Grand Slam tournament of the year in her opening match against Russian Ekaterina Makarova.

Kerber inherited the No. 1 seeding from Serena Williams, who is taking time off from competition during her pregnancy. The 29-year-old is a worthy successor—at least on a temporary basis—but she has not played as well this year as she did a year ago.

The German established her status in 2016 when she won three tournaments and had more than $10 million in earnings with a 63-18 record. She is off to a slow start in 2017 with a 19-12 record (no championships), and she has to figure things out quickly if she is going to turn things around in Paris.

Kerber and Makarova are scheduled to play the second match of the day at the Philippe-Chatrier Court, with matches scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. ET (11 a.m. Paris time). Here's a look at Sunday's complete schedule.

"I think it's for sure not the easiest time right now for me, but I think that I have to look for solutions right now. I think that my movement is not the best, especially on clay," Kerber said, per Ian Chadband of RolandGarros.com.

First-round matches are spread over the first three days of the tournament, and Kerber's match is the highest-profile of the opening day of competition.

Makarova could be a tough opponent, as she was victorious in two of three matches in Rome earlier this month. She defeated fourth-seeded Dominika Cibulkova in three sets before losing to Kiki Bertens in the third round.

Francisco Seco/Associated Press

Grigor Dimitrov, the 11th seed on the men's side of the draw, follows Kerber on the Philippe-Chatrier Court, and the Bulgarian will face Frenchman Stephane Robert in the first round.

Dimitrov is the second-highest-seeded player on the men's side to see action Sunday, behind sixth seed Dominic Thiem. Dimitrov was a first-round, straight-set loser to Juan Martin del Potro in Rome, but he has played quite well this year with a 17-6 record and just under $1 million in earnings.

The 25-year-old Dimitrov is something of an enigma because he often has looked like he is ready to break through and join the top players in the game. That's part of the reason for his "Baby Fed" nickname. However, he has never been able to come through with a reputation-making performance in the biggest tournaments.

Robert will have the backing of the home crowd, but he brings just a 1-8 record into this match, and it is unlikely he will be able to threaten Dimitrov.

Tenth-seeded Venus Williams will also see action Sunday as she faces Qiang Wang of China in the final match of the day on the Suzanne-Lenglen Court.

Serena's older sister has been an efficient player who is still very tough to beat. She takes a 17-6 record into the French Open, and she defeated Yaroslava Shvedova, Lesia Tsurenko and fifth-seeded Johanna Konta in Rome before losing to third-seeded Garbine Muguruza.

Williams, 36, has done well in her recent Grand Slam tournaments. She advanced all the way to the semifinals at last year's Wimbledon as well as the fourth round in the U.S. Open.

She had a spectacular showing at the Australian Open this year, advancing all the way to the final round where she was defeated by Serena, 6-4, 6-4.

However, it's not likely that she will go far in Paris because she has never fared well on that clay surface, although her recent performance in Rome may provide some hope. She has only made it past the quarterfinals in the French Open once in her career, and that was in 2002.

Seeded Players Schedule and Predictions

Despite her recent difficulties, look for Kerber to get the best of Markarova, although she could get pushed to three sets.

Dimitrov will not have any problems with Robert even though the Frenchman will have the support of the home crowd. Venus Williams will be able to use her ability and experience to easily make it through to the second round.

Here are our predictions for other seeded players who will be in action Sunday:

Dominic Thiem (6) over Bernard Tomic, Suzanne-Lenglen Court
Petra Kvitova (15) over Julia Boserup, Philippe-Chatrier Court
Lucas Pouille (16) over Julien Benneteau, Philippe-Chatrier Court
Gilles Muller (26) over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Court 1 
Dominika Cibulkova (6) over Lara Arruabarrena, Court 1 
Monica Puig over Roberta Vinci (31), Court 2
Albert Ramos-Vinolas (19) over Marius Copil, Court 3
Ivo Karlovic (23) over Stefanos Tsitsipas, Court 3
Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (22) over Cagla Buyukakcay, Court 3
Steve Johnson (25) over Yuichi Sugita, Court 6
Timea Bacsinszky (30) over Sara Sorribes Tormo, Court 17