PARIS: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, the three most successful men in Grand Slam tennis history, were on Thursday all drawn in the same half of the French Open.
Having slipped to number three in the world, it was always likely that Nadal, the 13-time champion, would face top-ranked Djokovic before the final.
The two great rivals could now meet in the semi-finals this year.
Tournament director Guy Forget admitted that the idea of bumping up Nadal to the second seeding instead of Daniil Medvedev, who has never won a match in Paris, had crossed their minds.
At Wimbledon, a player’s grass court form and record are taken into consideration when seedings are decided.
“Clay today is a real specialist…
