French Open 2016: Latest Predictions for Men, Women's Final Brackets

Weather was again the major story Monday at the 2016 French Open, as rain washed away the entire day's slate.

Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams, the tournament's respective top seeds, were originally scheduled for their fourth-round matches. 

Djokovic will instead face Roberto Bautista Agut on Tuesday, when he'll look to earn a seventh straight trip to the quarterfinals at Roland Garros. Bautista Agut, the No. 14 seed, has not defeated Djokovic in any of their four previous head-to-head matches. The 28-year-old is making his first fourth-round appearance in Paris, so the odds are stacked against him.

The tournament has broken perfectly for Djokovic, who has a clear path to the final. Rafael Nadal's withdrawal opened Djokovic's side of the bracket wide. Nadal and Djokovic were destined for a semifinals clash before the nine-time champion's wrist injury caused him to bow out early.

Instead, the top remaining seed on Djokovic's side of the bracket is No. 7 Tomas Berdych. Djokovic holds a 23-2 record all-time against Berdych, including a run of 10 straight wins. One of Berdych's two wins did, however, come at the 2013 Rome Masters.

Djokovic has yet to lose a set through the first three rounds and entered Paris motivated to finally complete his career Grand Slam. The Serb has fallen short in three of the last four French Open finals—twice to Rafael Nadal and last year to Stan Wawrinka. The clay-court slam is all that prevented him from the single-season Grand Slam in both 2011 and 2015.

"My confidence level is high because of the matches—many matches—that I have won this year," Djokovic said, per the Associated Press (via Los Angeles Times), "on [red clay] and all the other surfaces."

In the bracket's bottom half, it's looking like Wawrinka and Andy Murray will play for the right to face Djokovic. In the quarters, Wawrinka meets world No. 55 Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who reached his first Slam quarterfinal on the back of upset wins over Jack Sock and Milos Raonic. Wawrinka has won all six of their head-to-head matchups, including a straight-sets romp at Geneva earlier this year.

Murray will face all of France when he takes on Frenchman Richard Gasquet. The ninth seed is into the French quarters for the first time ever and should carry a packed house with him wherever he goes. 

Murray has won his last five matches against Gasquet, including a four-set win at the 2012 French Open. Having never reached a French final in his career, this could represent a big step in Murray's all-time legacy.

On the women's side, all eyes are focused on the Williams sisters. Serena and Venus can meet up in the semifinals if they continue to advance. Serena will take on 18th-seeded Elina Svitolina before facing the winner of No. 12 Carla Suarez Navarro and Yulia Putintseva.

Matchup	Winner
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (2) Andy Murray	Djokovic
(1) Serena Williams vs. Agnieszka Radwanska	Radwanska

The draw here is interesting because Williams could face two straight promising youngsters. Svitolina is a 21-year-old who made the quarters in France a year ago and reached a career-best ranking of No. 14 earlier this year. She's been unsuccessful in all of her previous attempts to defeat Williams, but the Serena of 2016 has not been the Serena of the past.

"Lots of disillusionment and a small loss of motivation," Williams' coach Patrick Mouratoglou said of her 2016 struggles, per Christopher Clarey of the New York Times. "But the desire is there now. She came to Rome to win the tournament. She's got it back. You feel it in the matches."

In a career resurgence as she closes in her 36th birthday, Venus Williams is looking for her first quarterfinal appearance in Paris since 2006. She will face eighth-seeded Timea Bacsinszky, a 2015 semifinalist. Venus should be seen as a significant underdog here, but every potential Williams sisters matchup is going to draw attention.

"Yeah, I'm usually pretty centered [because] you don't have to get overly excited every single second because you believe," Venus said, per Johnette Howard of ESPN.com. "You ought to be doing something great on the court."

Garbine Muguruza is the top seed who already put herself in the quarterfinals. She will face off against unseeded American Shelby Rogers, who has made a shocking run in her third French Open. 

Second-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska should continue her romp to the quarters when her match with Tsvetana Pironkova resumes. Radwanska has been stellar through her first three matches and appears finally ready to make a legitimate Paris run. The world No. 2 has yet to win a major championship and has reached just one final in her career (Wimbledon, 2012).

Still, smart odds are on the top two seeds on the men's and women's side making the finals. The brackets have broken well for all four players. Murray vs. Wawrinka may wind up being the best pre-finals match of the entire tournament, and the men's defending champion is the likeliest usurper of an all-chalk weekend.

But it's never a bad idea to bet heavy on the sport's elite and hope for the best.