City of Mights

• Arrivederci Roma, and bonjour Paris! Roland Garros draws have been released, so now we have an idea of what might happen in the City of Lights. (Forgive the formatting; lack of time and blogging from an iPad that doesn't autocorrect tennis names and terms nowhere near the same level as my phone are conflicting positions...)
  
  
  • Serena might successfully defend Roland Garros for the time in her career, something she has achieved at the other three Slams. Her road to victory could be complicated, with a scheduled third round tussle with big sis and a potential round of 16 match against the always dangerous Sabine Lisicki. However, she hasn't lost to Venus on clay since 1998 and has lost a combined four games to Lisicki in their two meetings outside of SW19. Her biggest foe in her quarter is Sam Stosur, but she is owned by Maria Sharapova, her likely fourth round opponent.
  • The second quarter of the women's draw might feature a surprise semifinalist. Anchored by Aga Radwanska and Angelique Kerber, two unreliable clay courters, bet on proven clay specialist Carla Suarez Navarro, the dramatic hometown favorite Alizé Cornet, or possibly a resurgent Francesca Schiavone to come through. Or maybe even Taylor Townsend! #merica
  • Sloane might break her second week streak at Slams. Currently at five consecutive fourth rounds or better, Sloane has been slumping going into Roland Garros, losing three of her last four matches. Recent titles by cohorts Eugenie Bouchard and Monica Puig will add unwanted additional pressure to keep pace with her results.
  • Nadal might be a five-time defending champion at a Slam, erasing one of the few accomplishments in which Roger Federer has him beat. Rafa's draw is manageable, but his hiccups this clay season means nothing is guaranteed this year. He could run into semi-proven talent Dominic Thiem in the second round and the very proven talent Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals.
  • Djokovic might complete the Career Slam. He's been knocking on the door of this elusive Slam for the last three years, coming within one net violation of virtually taking the crown last year. Nole's win over Rafa in Rome should give him a ton of confidence, and he'll need every bit of it. He's due to meet Marin Cilic in the third round, French native Jo-Wilfried Tsongs in the fourth, and either Milos Raonic or Kei Nishikori in the quarters
  • Federer versus Gulbis might be really exciting. Granted, our beloved Ernie would have to get there, and he's been rather unreliable to make it past the first week of majors. Still, imagine the drama: Fed will feed off the crowd and Ernie's "boring" comments from last year, Ernie will settle into his villain role with aplomb, and the match will last five sets with darkness threatening before Roger eeks out the victory. Love it.
  So let's throw down, French Open! I might be looking forward to the second week already!