PARIS, May 24 -- Spanish tennis ace Rafael Nadal could expect a smooth route to defending his title at the 2018 French Open without being drawn into the same half with several potential threats on Thursday.
Nadal, who claimed his 10th title one year ago, kicked off his title defense against Alexandr Dolgopolov. The first seeded player waiting ahead may be local favorite Richard Gasquet in the third round, while the 14th-seeded Jack Sock or Canadian promising star Denis Shapovalov looms in next.
South African Kevin Anderson is expected to be the final obstacle for Nadal in the quarter.
The third seed Marin Cilic awaits Nadal in the semi-finals, but the Croatian has to get past Juan Martin del Potro, a clay court specialist.
"It's the most important place in my career," Nadal said at the drawing ceremony.
"Having success in the last couple of weeks helps me to come here with more confidence. I'm excited to be back here," added the winner in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Rome this year.
Several players handing Nadal rare losses on clay court throughout his career, including Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem, were stacked in the bottom half where No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev stayed.
Djokovic had relished memories about Roland Garros, where he achieved a sweep of four Grand Slam tournament titles in 2016. Having recovered from an elbow injury haunting him from last year, the Serbian showed a sign of comeback with his semi-final appearance in Rome.
Djokovic could meet David Ferrer, Roberto Bautista Agut, fourth-seeded Grigor Dimitrov and the eighth seed David Goffin en route to the semifinals.
Thiem snapped Nadal's 50-set winning streak in the quarter-finals in Madrid, before losing the final to Zverev. That was also Nadal's sole loss in clay season this year.
Thiem could set up a revenge clash against Zverev in the quarter-finals, given that the German already overcame last year's runner-up Stan Wawrinka on the way.
After being rejected for a seeding position, three-time winner Serena Williams, ranked 453rd, will play her her first Grand Slam match against Czech Kristyna Pliskova in more than one year.
Williams was already pregnant when she won the 2017 Australian Open title, before giving birth to a daughter last September.
She is poised to meet her long-time rival Maria Sharapova, who also made a return to Roland Garros after two years, in the fourth round.
Sharapova missed the 2016 tournament due to drug suspension, and failed to receive a wild card from organizers last year.
Prior to the highly-anticipated clash with Williams, Sharapova faced uphill challenge against another Pliskova from the Czech Republic, the sixth-seeded Karolina Karolina in the third round.
William's elder sister Venus may face two Chinese players in a row. Wang Qiang will be her first round opponent for the second straight year, with Wang Yafan waiting for her in the second round.
Also in the bottom half, China's Zheng Saisai will meet Russian Ekaterina Makarova in the opening round.
Other three players Duan Yingying, Peng Shuai and Zhang Shuai will challenge No. 7 seed Caroline Garcia of France one after another, and Zhang hoped to refresh her best record of third round set at last edition.
Defending champion Jelena Ostapenko could face former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka in the second round.
The main draw of the 2018 French Open will run from May 27 until June 10.