Rafael Nadal's potential French Open nightmare scenario has been mapped out: The nine-time Roland Garros champ could face Novak Djokovic on a Wednesday afternoon in the 16th Arrondissement. Fans on both sides of the Atlantic are busy studying their Grand Slam spreadsheets after Friday's draw announcement, so let's take a look at some of the features of the 2015 men's draw:
Best first-round match
Grigor Dimitrov versus Jack Sock: The No. 10 seed Dimitrov was anointed the successor to Roger Federer some years ago. He's a gifted, appealing and hard-working professional who has broken through to the top 10, but he's 24 and so far has had trouble building on his breakthrough results of 2014.
Sock has been hyped as the Next Big Thing in American tennis. He, too, has had trouble living up to expectations, but he's only 22, has won a tournament this year and is up to No. 36 in the rankings. Sock plays a muscular game marinated in sweat; Dimitrov is powerful but smooth. It's a great matchup. They have faced each other just once, with Dimitrov winning in three tough sets in Stockholm last fall.
Luck of the draw
Roger Federer: The all-time singles Grand Slam champion and former French Open champion, who plays with house money everywhere he goes, drew a qualifier in the first round and could play one in the second round as well.
Player who is most ripe for the picking
Here's a hint: The short form of his name consists of four letters and it ain't "Nole." Or "Stan." And here's another one: The draw could hurt his chances at a record 10th French Open title.
Player who is best positioned for sailing
Andy Murray: If we're looking at someone merely having a good tournament (reaching the quarterfinals or semis), the answer might be the No. 3 seed, whose draw is peppered with big hitters who lack the requisite consistency for clay and lightweights who cannot overpower you from the baseline.
But long term, the nod goes to Federer. There's an explosive Dominic Thiem here and an Ivo Karlovic there, but with potential opponents like inconsistent No. 12 seed Gael Monfils or slumping No. 5 Stan Wawrinka in the quarterfinals, and No. 5 Kei Nishikori or No. 4 Tomas Berdych in the semis, you know Federer is feeling pretty good about his chances.
Best Cinderella candidate
Given that Nadal has won this thing nine of the past 10 years, there are 126 potential Cinderellas (we exclude Federer, the winner in 2009). Although Nishikori was disappointing late in the clay season, he has a deadly game on the surface and a reasonable draw.
The American with the friendliest path
John Isner: It's a tough draw for the beleaguered American contingent this year; three of the six direct-acceptance men in the draw are playing seeds. No. 16 Isner, however, has been playing well. If he gets by crafty Italian Andreas Seppi (no sure thing), he could ultimately meet fellow American Donald Young in the third round. Isner's path leads to a fourth-round meeting against No. 3 seed Murray and potential quarterfinal clash versus No. 7 David Ferrer.
Welcome to Roland Garros
Frances Tiafoe, the 17-year-old who earned the American reciprocal wild card into the French Open, will meet Martin Klizan of the Czech Republic. It's Tiafoe's first main draw at Roland Garros. Nothing can prepare you for five-set Grand Slam tennis on red clay against a veteran who's got every shot in the book. Nothing.
Who is most likely to hit the reset button
Gael Monfils: The No. 13 seed crashed and burned in ugly fashion at two Grand Slams last year, the U.S. Open and the one that concerns us here. Against Murray in the quarters at Roland Garros, Monfils stunk up the house for two sets, played inspired tennis for the next two, then collapsed horrifically to lose the fifth 0-6. He has a good chance to redeem himself this year; the top names in his quarter are Federer, whom he has already beaten this year on clay (Monte Carlo), and Wawrinka.
Player most desperate for a good run
Ernests Gulbis: The No. 24 seed upset Federer and Berdych in back-to-back matches last year before he lost in the semifinals to Djokovic. Gulbis went on to crack the top 10. His legion of admirers (he's a charming lad, that Gulbis) predicted world domination, but so far, he has won just two matches (one of them this week). Before anyone talks more about world domination, let's see if he can get by the qualifier he'll face in the first round.
Hard luck of the draw
American Steve Johnson, a hard-court player through and through, has made decent progress on clay. Unfortunately, he faces No. 26 seed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, who has been on a roll this spring after winning titles in Zagreb (hard court) and Bucharest (clay).