French Open 2015: Sunday Schedule and Predictions for Roland Garros Bracket
The clay courts of Roland Garros are being hosed down in anticipation of the 2015 French Open's commencement Sunday, and some of the field's top stars will be in action.
You won't find either of the top seeds slated to play in Day 1, but the schedule for the first day of matches isn't short on big names and contenders who figure to go deep into the two-week spectacle. It takes a handful of rounds before a clear picture on either draw presents itself, but warning signs can crop up in the first few rounds along with the occasional upset.
With that in mind, here's a look at the matches to watch for Sunday and picks for the biggest ones.
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Day 1 French Open Schedule: Sunday, May 24
| No. 2 Roger Federer vs. Alejandro Falla | 2nd Match |
| No. 14 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. Christian Lindell | 4th Match |
| No. 8 Stan Wawrinka vs. Marsel Ilhan | 2nd Match |
| No. 5 Kei Nishikori vs. Paul-Henri Mathieu | 3rd Match |
| No. 19 Roberto Bautista Agut vs. Florian Mayer | 5 a.m. |
| No. 22 Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Go Soeda | 5 a.m. |
| No. 3 Simona Halep vs. Evgeniya Rodina | 5 a.m. |
| No. 9 Ekaterina Makarova vs. Louisa Chirico | 5 a.m. |
| No. 7 Ana Ivanovic vs. Yaroslava Shvedova | 4th Match |
| No. 21 Garbine Muguruza vs. Petra Matric | 2nd Match |
| No. 13 Lucie Safarova vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova | 4th Match |
| No. 24 Shuai Peng vs. Polona Hercog | 4th Match |
Complete schedule at RolandGarros.com
| 5 a.m. - 10 a.m. | French Open first round | ESPN2 |
| 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. | French Open first round | Tennis Channel |
| 1 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. | French Open first round | NBC |
Predictions
No. 2 Roger Federer vs. Alejandro Falla
The premier men's star to hit the clay courts on Sunday's kickoff afternoon will be the one with the easiest draw—by comparison. Roger Federer emerges as the No. 2 overall seed to face unseeded Alejandro Falla.
While top-seeded Novak Djokovic has Rafael Nadal to face in the quarterfinals before Andy Murray in the semis, Federer is sitting pretty with three of the Big Four on the opposite side of the draw. But his opponent in front of him isn't one to scoff at.
Falla's biggest moment nearly came at Federer's expense back in 2010 when he almost topped the Swiss star in the first round of Wimbledon. Falla is still 0-of-7 for his career against Federer, but that one moment sticks out in the memories of many, including tennis journalist Chris Goldsmith:
The Colombian may have that one experience to pull from, but his recent outings give no indication that he can seriously threaten Federer. World No. 73 Federico Delbonis bounced him in qualifying of the Rome Masters, and he didn't make it out of the round of 64 in Madrid.
Meanwhile, Federer looked to be nearing his clay-court best in Rome off his championship defeat to Djokovic. Having gone down two sets to none to this same opponent years ago, the Swiss maestro won't make that same mistake again.
Prediction: Federer wins in straight sets
No. 7 Ana Ivanovic vs. Yaroslava Shvedova
After emerging as one of the first-rate women's contenders in tennis over her 2014 campaign, Ana Ivanovic is now mired in some of the worst struggles of her playing career.
Her strong season last year pushed her near the forefront of the sport, but she's falling out of that spot just as quickly. Her shocking first-round loss to a qualifier at the Australian Open was just the start of a massive slump, which has seen her go a woeful 4-5 in her last five tournaments.
Meanwhile, opponent Yaroslava Shvedova has emerged as a dangerous opponent. And while Ivanovic slipped immediately at the Australian Open in the year's first Grand Slam, Shvedova surprised by knocking off 16th-seeded Lucie Safarova in the first round.
Should Ivanovic bring her best to the clay courts, there's no doubt that Shvedova won't be able to keep up. But to say Ivanovic's best hasn't come out over the last several months wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Early troubles at a Grand Slam will doom Ivanovic again, as the hot hand of Shvedova tops her.
Prediction: Shvedova upsets Ivanovic in three sets
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