First Look at the 2009 Roland Garros Women’s Singles Draw

The main draw for the 2009 French Open was released just hours ago, and players and fans alike are eager to see the intriguing matches lined up for Paris.

Take a look at On the Baseline’s preview of the women’s main draw, along with a few predictions on how Roland Garros might play out.

The Contenders

Serena Williams [2]
Is it possible that for the first time since Steffi Graf, a Grand Slam might be in the works? It could happen, although Serena’s not looked the same since losing to Victoria Azarenka in the final at Miami, possibly due to her leg injury. Clay and an injured leg mix about as well as oil and water, making this next segment of the Serena Slam difficult to contemplate—unless Serena is feeling 100 percent.

Still, Serena received a nice little break when the draw was released, and her biggest early threat could be Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinals. By that time, expect her to have found her second gear and cruise straight to the final.
Prediction: Champion

Dinara Safina [1]
Ever since Serena Williams declared herself the de-facto world No. 1, Dinara Safina has let her tennis do the talking. She heads into Roland Garros on a clay court tear of back-to-back titles in Rome and Madrid, and is looking like a title contender.

Her road to major success won’t be easy, especially with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Jie Zheng, Victoria Azarenka, Carla Suarez Navarro and defending champion Ana Ivanovic in her quarter. If Safina is to win her first Grand Slam title as No. 1, it will be done the hard way.
Prediction: Runner-Up

Venus Williams [3]
Despite being one of the greatest tennis players of this generation, the older Williams sibling has never fared well at Roland Garros. Her best showing, a finalist finish, was seven years ago and since then she’s never appeared past the quarterfinals.

That could change in 2009. She has a tricky draw, but nothing insurmountable. She’ll open against her countrywoman Bethanie Mattek-Sands (expect Fed Cup captain Mary Joe Fernandez to watch this match closely), and then she might get a chance to score some revenge against Charleston winner Sabine Lisicki in the second round.
Prediction: Semifinalist

Jelena Jankovic [5]
Jankovic has been solid on clay this season, but not outstanding. And outstanding is what the congenial Serbian needs to be to win the most grueling major in tennis. It looks like early smooth sailing could be ahead for SS Jankovic, but choppy waters could beckon as early as the fourth round against Caroline Wozniacki, followed by what could be a close encounter against Elena Dementieva. If Jelena makes it past those two, she might get to play Serena.
Prediction: Semifinalist

The People Who Can Make Things Interesting in Paris

Ana Ivanovic [8]
Ana Ivanovic’s road to Roland Garros has been littered with pratfalls and pit stops. Her momentum died after winning the title in 2008 and as of yet, we’ve not seen it revived. Like Serena Williams, Ivanovic heads into Paris with a knee injury, so it remains to be seen whether her body—let alone her confidence—can handle another long, grueling run to the title.

Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova arrives in Paris with no expectations. She dislikes the surface, and once described her clay game as being akin to a “cow on ice.”

Sharapova has played three singles matches in nearly a year, and is suddenly thrust onto the big stage. Will she have a carpe diem moment, relish the lack of pressure, and make a decent run? I prefer to think realistically that for Sharapova, this is a valuable warm-up opportunity for Wimbledon.

Caroline Wozniacki [10]
Wozniacki has been quietly enjoying a breakthrough season in 2009, and has a solid chance at shaking up the status quo in Paris. She won a tournament on American clay earlier this year at Ponte Vedra Beach, and reached the Madrid final last week. She debuted in the Top 10 for the first time on Monday and could be a significant floater in the third quarter.

Nadia Petrova [11]
Three years ago, Nadia Petrova was a favorite to win Roland Garros. In 2006, she dominated the clay court season with titles in Amelia Island, Charleston, Berlin, and Stuttgart. But it all came crashing down when she injured her hip practicing before the start of Paris.

At the moment, Petrova is back and healthy. She reached the semifinals in Ponte Vedra Beach and the round of sixteen at each of her European clay tournaments. Not exactly the results of 2006, but still solid overall. The third quarter of the draw appears to be the most questionable. Venus leads, but is not dependable on clay. Vera Zvonareva is fresh off a badly sprained ankle. And Mauresmo, well this is Paris. That leaves Petrova with another chance to show why she used to be one of the best clay court players on the Tour.

Amelie Mauresmo [16]
Amelie Mauresmo said something the other day that surprised me. Instead of downplaying the pressure, or inwardly dreading yet another Roland Garros experience, Mauresmo said that she just wants to have fun this year. Fun? Mauresmo in Paris? Right. But maybe the twilight of her career has caused her to relax a little before her home major.

She has already picked up two big wins at home this year with the title at the Premier Open GDF SUEZ in Paris and won all three of her matches to save France’s spot in the Fed Cup World Group, also at home in France. Maybe the real fun is yet to come.