Rafael Nadal to play Alexander Zverev in French Open first round

Rafael Nadal is set to face world number four Alexander Zverev in a highly anticipated first-round match at his farewell French Open, while women's champion Iga Swiatek and fellow four-time major winner Naomi Osaka are on course to meet in the second round.

Defending men's champion and 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic will play French veteran Pierre Hugues-Herbert in his opening match.

Nadal, who has won Roland Garros 14 times, is unseeded after an injury caused his ranking to drop to 276.

He and Zverev met in the semi-finals in 2022 when the German was forced to retire after suffering a serious ankle injury.

Nadal, the winner of 22 Grand Slam titles, will turn 38 next week and this season will be his last on tour.

He boasts a 7-3 winning head-to-head record against Germany's Zverev, with five of those victories achieved on clay.

Zverev arrives in Paris after securing the Rome Open title last weekend.

In addition to his 14 titles in Paris, Nadal can boast a record of 112 wins and only three losses, two of which came against Djokovic, who will be pursuing his fourth French Open title.

On Wednesday, Djokovic celebrated turning 37 by triumphing in Geneva in his 1,100th career match.

Despite reaching the semifinals of the Australian Open and Monte Carlo Masters, the Serbian has not yet taken home a championship in 2024.

After the draw on Thursday, Djokovic is favoured to play Zverev in the semifinals.

Christopher Eubanks of the United States will go up against world number two Jannik Sinner, who defeated Djokovic at the Australian Open in January.

Carlos Alcaraz, the third-seeded Wimbledon champion and 2023 Paris semifinalist, takes on a qualifier.

Although Sinner and Alcaraz are slated to face off in the semifinals, their ailments have kept them out of the Rome tournament.

Andy Murray, the 2016 runner-up, is also competing in the tournament for the final time.

In a match between seasoned Grand Slam competitors, 37-year-old Stan Wawrinka and 39-year-old Wawrinka square off.

In their 22 meetings throughout a two-decade rivalry, Murray has a 13-9 advantage.

Three such matches took place at Roland Garros, where Murray prevailed in the 2016 semifinals and the Swiss in the 2017 final four and the 2020 opening round.

In the women's draw, Osaka will play Lucia Bronzetti of Italy in her opening round before perhaps facing a qualifier. Top seed and world number one Swiatek will play a qualifier.

Swiatek is attempting to win his fourth French Open championship and his fifth major.

Osaka, who is now ranked 134th in the world, has never advanced past the third round in Paris. The 48th-ranked player in the world, Bronzetti, has lost both of his main draw matches.

The 26-year-old Osaka has had a complicated connection with the French Open.

She was penalised in 2021 for refusing to participate in required media appearances and for leaving the competition after just one game, claiming to be safeguarding her mental health.

Meanwhile, Swiatek is vying to become the first player since Justine Henin in 2007 to win three straight women's titles in Paris.

Erika Andreeva of Russia, ranked 101st, takes on world number two Aryna Sabalenka from the outset.

Coco Gauff, the third seed and US Open champion, starts the match against a qualifier and is favoured to play Swiatek in the semifinals.

In the final four, double Australian Open champion Sabalenka is favoured to face former Wimbledon victor Elena Rybakina.

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