French Open 2015 Draw: Sleepers Who Will Emerge from Sunday's Day 1 Action
The start of any Grand Slam is a time to assess which favorites are struggling, but also an opportunity to tell which unheralded players might make a run. The 2015 French Open should figure to be no different.
Day 1 of a three-day span of first-round action at Roland Garros begins Sunday, and while the top-seeded stars won't be in action, plenty of other big names will. While they will promise to steal the brunt of the headlines following the start of play, don't be surprised when these players turn some heads by dispatching of their first-round opponents with ease.
Keeping it exclusive to those who are playing Sunday, let's take a look at three sleepers who should get off to a sizzling start at Roland Garros.
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2015 French Open Draw
| 1 | Novak Djokovic | Serena Williams |
| 2 | Roger Federer | Maria Sharapova |
| 3 | Andy Murray | Simona Halep |
| 4 | Tomas Berdych | Petra Kvitova |
| 5 | Kei Nishikori | Caroline Wozniacki |
| 6 | Rafael Nadal | Eugenie Bouchard |
| 7 | David Ferrer | Ana Ivanovic |
| 8 | Stan Wawrinka | Carla Suarez Navarro |
| 9 | Marin Cilic | Ekaterina Makarova |
| 10 | Grigor Dimitrov | Andre Petkovic |
| 11 | Feliciano Lopez | Angelique Kerber |
| 12 | Gilles Simon | Karolina Pliskova |
| 13 | Gael Monfils | Lucie Safarova |
| 14 | Jo-Wilfried Tsonga | Agnieszka Radwanska |
| 15 | Kevin Anderson | Venus Williams |
| 16 | John Isner | Madison Keys |
Complete draws available at RolandGarros.com
No. 9 Ekaterina Makarova
The surprise inclusion of Carla Suarez Navarro in the top eight seeds at Roland Garros meant a tougher draw than expected for one notable contender, and that turned out to be Ekaterina Makarova. But the snub could turn out to do the exact opposite, giving Makarova an added boost to post her best performance ever at the French Open.
The Russian starts out play Sunday against Louisa Chirico, a 19-year-old American up-and-comer who is quickly climbing the ranks. But the 114th-ranked women's singles player will have her hands full against an established member of the Grand Slam circuit.
Makarova took her lumps early in her career, but she has begun putting it together as of late. Her best two Grand Slam finishes have come in her last two appearances, making it to the semifinals at both the U.S. Open and the Australian Open.
For all of her success in Grand Slams, the French Open is the lone one that Makarova has never advanced past the fourth round in. But if her recent play on the sport's biggest stages are any indication, she's bound to break that in convincing fashion over the coming weeks.
No. 5 Kei Nishikori
It might be a disservice to Kei Nishikori to paint him as a sleeper for this year's French Open, after he's certainly established himself as one of the top secondary contenders in the sport. But with the hype still closely following the Big Four, Nishikori has another chance to turn heads at Roland Garros.
The 25-year-old has been pegged for a breakout year in 2015 after closing the 2014 campaign off with a final defeat at the U.S. Open, and fell victim to Stan Wawrinka at the quarterfinals in Melbourne. But he's since claimed titles at the Memphis Open and Barcelona Open, the last of which came on clay.
The clay courts are a tough transition for many players, but Nishikori seems to be adapting well, per Kyodo News (via the Japan Times):
“I have had some good matches (on clay) and I can head into the French Open with confidence. There are a number of things I am looking forward to and I am well prepared."
Nishikori has a tough opening draw Sunday, facing former world No. 12 Paul-Henri Mathieu. But the Japanese phenom has improved considerably since his only defeat to Mathieu, and he should reign supreme in a difficult early test.
No. 14 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
The hopes of a domestic champion at Roland Garros for the first time since Yannick Noah in 1983 weigh quite heavily on the shoulders of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
While fellow Frenchman Gilles Simon is a superior seed and both Gael Monfils and Richard Gasquet are contenders as well, Tsonga is the last of them to reach a Grand Slam final—at the 2008 Australian Open. He's also remained the most dangerous contender since then but missed this year's Australian Open with injury.
Some time off has seemed to help Tsonga as he looks to get back to his form of old, per Agence France-Presse (via the National):
“Since (the Davis Cup) I have had the time to take a look at what people think of me—in the street when we pass each other. On the whole I think they are proud of what I’ve achieved so far. I think it will be the same at Roland Garros.”
The 30-year-old's success at Roland Garros has been apparent, making it all the way to the semifinals in 2013. He faces qualifier Christian Lindell out of Sweden in Round 1, which should be just the first step of many that Tsonga takes at the French Open.
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