French Open 2016: Thursday Roland Garros Schedule and Bracket Predictions

Thursday's play at the French Open will feature the top two seeds at the tournament, as Novak Djokovic seeks to win his first title at Roland Garros, and Serena Williams guns for her fourth on the Paris clay.

Below, we'll take a look at the day's schedule and break down each of the four quarterfinal matchups.

Court	Time (ET)	Matchup
Philippe-Chatrier Court	7 a.m.	Novak Djokovic (SRB) [1] vs. Tomas Berdych (CZE) [7]
Philippe-Chatrier Court	Not before 9 a.m.	Serena Williams (USA) [1] vs. Yulia Putintseva (KAZ)
Suzanne-Lenglen Court	7 a.m.	Dominic Thiem (AUT) [13] vs. David Goffin (BEL) [12]
Suzanne-Lenglen Court	Not before 9 a.m.	Kiki Bertens (NED) vs. Timea Bacsinszky (SUI) [8]

Djokovic will be the prohibitive favorite against seventh-seeded Tomas Berdych. For one thing, Djokovic is 23-2 all time against Berdych and has won 10 straight matches against him dating back to 2013. The two have never faced off at Roland Garros, though Djokovic is 2-1 in their matches on clay.

Djokovic is also the hottest player in the world at the moment. He has won five titles this year, including the Australian Open, and has lost just two matches total this season. Oh, and he also became the first man in history to win $100 million in prize money, per BBC Sport.

But the Serbian superstar is just focused on this tournament and dealing with the rainy conditions in Paris as he looks to finally earn his first French Open title.

“There is nothing particular [sic] major that I'm going to switch or change compared to previous years in terms of preparation," he told Nick McCarvel of USA Today. "This year, we have a particular situation because of the weather, so I’m going to try to get as much rest as possible and not get distracted by too many things outside [of the court].”

The other top seed, Williams, seems hardly distracted by anything thus far. She has cruised into the quarterfinals once again, though she's hardly taking her next opponent, Yulia Putintseva, lightly.

“She's really hungry,” Williams said, per David Waldstein of the New York Times. “I feel like she gives 200 percent on every single point. She's a fighter. I feel like I'm a little bit that way myself, too.”

Williams has won both matches in the series, including this season at Indian Wells, so it likely won't matter how hungry Putintseva is on Thursday. In the women's game, you get to eat if Williams doesn't show up to the table.

In the other women's quarterfinal, eighth-seeded Timea Bacsinszky won the only meeting between her and Kiki Bertens, at the 2014 U.S. Open. Bacsinszky has a title under her belt this season and has now reached four quarterfinals since mid-March, making her the favorite, though Bertens eliminated third-seeded Angelique Kerber and 15th-seeded Madison Keys on her magical run.

So flip a coin. But if you have to draw a line in the sand and pick a side, take Bacsinszky in what should be a great match.

Finally, 12th-seeded David Goffin will face 13th-seeded Dominic Thiem in an intriguing matchup. Goffin is 4-2 in the series, though the pair have split their two matches on clay, and Thiem has put together the much better season, with two titles under his belt to none for Goffin.

Goffin, on the other hand, won the only meeting between the two this year.

Go with Thiem in this one. He's in better form and has won two of the last three matchups. It should be a hard-fought, tight win, however.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.