Sinner, Djokovic kept apart in French Open draw
PARIS: Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic will not be able to meet until the French Open final after the pair were placed in opposite halves of the draw on Thursday. Sinner, the red-hot title favorite in the absence of injured rival Carlos Alcaraz, will start his bid for a maiden Roland Garros crown against French wildcard Clement Tabur, the world number 165. World number one Sinner is slated to meet big-hitting American fifth seed Ben Shelton in the quarter-finals. Daniil Medvedev is a possible semifinal opponent for the Italian. The Russian gave Sinner a rare scare in the Italian Open semis earlier this month before eventually succumbing in three sets. Djokovic will kick off his latest tilt at a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title against home player Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. Second seed Alexander Zverev is a potential semifinal opponent for Djokovic. The German has played Djokovic twice before at Roland Garros, suffering quarter-final defeats against the Serb in 2019 and last year. The stand-out first-round tie sees in-form French number one Arthur Fils take on former champion Stan Wawrinka, featuring at the tournament for the last time before retirement.