French Open 2015: Thursday Schedule and Predictions for Roland Garros Bracket
Slowly but surely, the action at the 2015 French Open is getting more and more evenly matched as Thursday's matches will continue the second round of play.
A couple of big names have already bitten the dust, like No. 3 Simona Halep and No. 6 Eugenie Bouchard on the women's side, or No. 11 Feliciano Lopez and No. 10 Grigor Dimitrov in the men's singles. However, those upsets would pale in comparison to the ramifications should one of the marquee names playing Thursday happen to fall.
Let's go ahead and preview how to catch Thursday's second-round action before diving into the biggest matchups on tap for Day 5.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Thursday, May 27 French Open Schedule
| 5 a.m. - 10 a.m. | Second round | ESPN2 |
| 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. | Second round | Tennis Channel |
Live streaming available at WatchESPN and Tennis Channel Live.
No. 6 Rafael Nadal vs. Nicolas Almagro
Rafael Nadal is facing an uphill task that most nine-time winners of any tournament don't endure, having to emerge from a winless year and a lowly sixth seed to win his sixth straight French Open. He avoided adversity in an easy Round 1 win, but he has plenty of reasons to sweat his Thursday opponent.
Nicolas Almagro has established himself as a contender over the last several years, making quarterfinal appearances at Roland Garros three times since 2008. After topping Alexandr Dolgopolov in the opening round, Almagro should come in confident having beaten Nadal on clay in Barcelona recently, as per Sports Illustrated Tennis:
From the moment that this Round 2 meeting was finalized, it had the makings to be an instant classic. But it could just as easily give Nadal some much-needed momentum and a confidence boost entering a brutal late-round draw, as told by Chris Oddo of Tennis Now:
Looking ahead could have been in the cards for Nadal in French Opens of the past, but that shouldn't be likely with the Spaniard having plenty of issues in his own game to work out. Assuming he comes to play and learns from his recent mistakes against Almagro, Nadal shouldn't be in danger of losing his second match at Roland Garros in the last decade.
Prediction: Nadal wins in straight sets
No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. Gilles Muller
Top-seeded men's star Novak Djokovic began his quest for the career Grand Slam in style, and he'll look to continue his momentum Thursday against Gilles Muller.
The Serbian wasn't at his best throughout the opening round against Jarkko Nieminen, but he never got tested en route to a 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 victory. Thursday will be an inevitable step up in competition, facing a 32-year-old with plenty of career success.
Muller should present a tougher task for Djokovic to overcome, but it shouldn't result in any notable struggles for him. The Luxembourg native has never advanced past the second round at Roland Garros, while Djokovic is looking to win his 24th consecutive match.
With the way Djokovic is playing, it would be a surprise to even see him struggle in a set like he did in Round 1 against Nieminen. Expect the top seed to refine his game and control all three sets to build some confidence for later on.
Prediction: Djokovic wins in straight sets
No. 3 Andy Murray vs. Joao Sousa
Andy Murray faces a familiar foe in the second round of the French Open, going up against Joao Sousa for a spot in Round 3.
The British star is accustomed to facing Sousa throughout his career, having beaten him in all five of their meetings. That includes a comprehensive straight-set victory for Murray in this year's Australian Open.
Perhaps Murray's toughest opponent Thursday will be the court, as he faces off on the main Philippe-Chatrier Court. He wasn't shy in expressing his frustration with the court after Round 1 play, per BBC Sport's Piers Newbery:
""Philippe Chatrier, is very slow, extremely slow...When I practiced on the outside courts and the sun is out, it's always pretty quick, high bouncing. Suzanne Lenglen, a little bit slower than the outside courts, but still it's not that slow. I didn't feel it.
"But Centre Court is very low bouncing, which is strange. Yeah, very slow and heavy."
"
If Murray aspires to put himself in a favorable position moving forward to Round 3, he might want to avoid any sort of lengthy match and put away Sousa quickly. As for why, his potential third-round opponent Nick Kyrgios has already advanced on by way of a walkover, which BBC's Russell Fuller reported:
Sousa has never seriously troubled Murray before, and they have played in some very high-stakes matchups—most recently in this calendar year at a Grand Slam. Murray is a perfect 11-0 on clay so far in 2015 and will extend his streak to No. 12 rather easily.
Prediction: Murray wins in straight sets
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
