Busted Racquet previews the men's draw at the 2012 French Open.

More big three in the semifinals? -- Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have all made the semifinals in five of the last 10 Grand Slams. (That number seems a little low, no?) The path to another joint appearance shouldn't be difficult for the world's No. 1 and No. 2 players. For the No. 3, it's a little bumpier.

Roger Federer's tough road -- On the bright side for Federer, he got placed on Novak Djokovic's side of the draw, which means he wouldn't see Rafael Nadal until the final. On the down side, he could see David Nalbandian in the second round, Feliciano Lopez in the fourth round and Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals. Some have included Andy Roddick as a tough player in Federer's draw (they could meet in the third round). This ignores the fact that Roddick was 9-9 at Roland Garros when he was a top-10 player.

Easiest early draw: Jurgen Melzer -- The Austrian is surrounded by qualifiers: He'll play one to start and then get the winner of a qualifier/qualifier match in the second round. His reward, should he survive: Novak Djokovic in the third round.

Brian Baker watch -- The 27-year-old American's unbelievable comeback story will face a stiff, but winnable, first-round test in Xavier Malisse. The last time Baker was at Roland Garros, he advanced to the finals of the boys tournament. That was nine years ago.

This makes up for last year -- John Isner drew Rafael Nadal in the first round in 2011 and took the eventual champion to five sets. This year, he has an easier start. He plays a qualifier in the first round before a possible tricky matchup against Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu.

Best first-round match: Baker vs. Malisse -- Donald Young and Grigor Dimitrov are playing in a match that's probably best described as a slow-speed train wreck. Sam Querrey tries to get back into the groove against No. 8 seed Janko Tipsarevic. But the story of the first week of the tournament could be Baker. If he walked down the Champs Elysees right now with a sign reading "I'm Brian Baker," nobody would look twice. With a single win next week, that could change.

Best possible quarterfinal: Roger Federer (3) vs. Tomas Berdych (7) -- This wins by default. Novak Djokovic would play Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who probably doesn't expect to get that far. Andy Murray and David Ferrer? That'd be more fun to watch on hard courts. And it doesn't really matter who Nadal plays in the quarters, unless Robin Soderling has been hiding out in the bowels of Philippe Chatrier.

Semifinals predictions: Djokovic vs. Federer; Nadal vs. Isner -- If there are no surprises on the top half of the draw, we'll get a rematch of last year's classic semifinal between Djokovic and Federer. Who will advance to face Nadal in the other half? John Isner struggled in his two European clay tournaments, but was 3-0 on the surface in Davis Cup matches. His quarter is wide open.

Finals: Nadal d. Djokovic -- The only prediction here is picking which name to put second. Rafael Nadal continues to be the most dominant clay court player of his, or any, generation. He's 45-1 lifetime at the event. In order to make it 52 for 53, he'll have to hold off his recent nemesis. Nadal will win in straights and that 2011 clay court aberration will seem like a distant memory.

No. 1 -- Victoria Azarenka

Last Year: Quarters, L to Na Li 5-7, 2-6

2012 record: 35-3

2012 clay record: 9-2

2012 highlights: Won Australian Open, Indian Wells, Doha, Sydney

First-round opponent: Alberta Brianti

Highest possible quarterfinal seed: Samantha Stosur

No. 2 -- Maria Sharapova

Last Year: Semis, L to Na Li 4-6, 5-7

2012 record: 29-5

2012 clay record: 12-1

2012 highlights: Finalist at Australian Open, won Stuttgart and Rome

First-round opponent: Alexandra Cadantu

Highest possible quarterfinal seed: Serena Williams

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No. 1 -- Novak Djokovic

Last year: Semifinal, L to Roger Federer 6-7(5), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7(5)

2012 record: 30-5

2012 clay record: 10-3

2012 highlights: Won Australian Open and Miami

First-round opponent: Potito Starace

Highest possible quarterfinal seed: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

No. 2 -- Rafael Nadal

Last Year: Champion, W over Roger Federer 7-5, 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-1

2012 record: 33-4

2012 clay record: 16-1

2012 highlights: Finalist at Australian Open, Won Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Rome

First-round opponent: Simone Bolelli

Highest possible quarterfinal seed: Janko Tipsarevic

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The 2012 French Open odds may shift slightly on Friday when the official draw is released, but certainly not enough to change Rafael Nadal's status as the presumptive favorite to win his seventh title at Roland Garros. On the women's side, Serena Williams has the lowest odds, swapping places with a slumping Victoria Azarenka in recent days.

Here are the odds for the top 13 players in each draw (via William Hill):

• Four men have won the past 28 Grand Slams and three (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic) have won 27 of those 28. In the same span, 13 women have won Slams, including a different victor in every major since the 2011 Australian Open. Thus, it's little surprise that the fifth best odds on the men's side are 25/1 compared to 10/1 on the women's.

• Even at 5/6, Nadal seems like a pretty good choice. Those are the same odds he was getting last year when Djokovic had defeated him twice on clay and was undefeated headed into the tournament.

• Betting is illegal in the United States; thanks, Puritans! If it wasn't, I'd be very interested in losing some cash on Angelique Kerber at 20/1.

• Will Aga Radwanska's odds shift if she gets placed on the opposite side of the draw from her 2012 nemesis, Victoria Azarenka?

• Mona Barthel? Most of the time, when you see an out of place line like that, it's a sure sign the oddsmakers know something you don't. In this case; no.

This is from a few days ago, but we can never resist a good busted racquet, particularly when it's from a first-ballot Hall of Frame-smasher like Andy Roddick.

In his first match since losing to Juan Monaco in Miami, Roddick was unsteady on the red clay of Dusseldorf, losing 6-2, 6-2 to Carlos Berlocq. Midway through the match, he vented:

People say Roddick is past his prime but when I see the perfect form he uses in beating up his racquet, I wonder. Look at the balance, focus, stance and follow through. It's like he's 19 all over again.

Racquet clap to Jon Scott and The Daily Spin

Former American teen phenom Brian Baker continued his amazing comeback story on Wednesday by defeating No. 13 Gael Monfils, 6-3, 7-6 (9) at the Open de Nice.

It was the 27-year-old's first match against a player ranked in the top 50 since he beat reigning French Open champion Gaston Gaudio at the 2005 U.S. Open. In between, Baker underwent five surgeries that sidelined him for four years. Left hip, right hip, sports hernia, left hip (again), Tommy John surgery. The injuries knocked him out before he ever had a chance to get in.

He went back to school, healed from his ailments and returned to professional tennis in 2011. Baker had played in a French Open boys final against Stanislas Wawrinka. He defeated Novak Djokovic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in junior events. He played in three U.S. Opens. Now he was in a futures event in Florida, earning 18 rankings points off five wins against players ranked in mid-1000s.

Last month, Baker won eight matches in Savannah to earn an American qualifying spot in the French Open. He traveled to Nice last week and won three qualifying matches to earn a spot in the main draw. The victory over Monfils was his second of the tournament. It is Baker's first tournament off North American soil in six years.

Baker is No. 216 in the ATP rankings and rising. He should move past his career high of No. 176 after this week.

"I'm confident," Baker recently told the Wall Street Journal. "But being out for so long, I know how quickly it can be taken away from you. I'm going to do everything in my power that this time, it's for a long time."

On Wednesday, Novak Djokovic walked the runway in Paris to debut his new kit with Japanese retail giant Uniqlo. It came one day after the world No. 1 announced he was leaving Italian sportswear designer Sergio Tacchini to sign with the expanding casual wear company.

The design is simple. Djokovic is decked in all-white with red and blue piping on his right shoulder. His polo shirt zips in the middle and Uniqlo logos adorn his chest and shoulder. It's fairly safe for the inaugural design in a deal that's supposed to propel the Fast Apparel company to new heights in Europe and the United States.

On the bright side, it ain't Sergio Tacchini.

The financial terms of the deal weren't announced, but it's safe to say it was a healthy contract. In this picture, Djokovic is shown shaking hands with Fast Apparel CEO Tadashi Yanai. He's the richest man in Japan.

If somebody in the crowd isn't yelling "take it off," then I don't know anything anymore.

Novak Djokovic has ended his relationship with Sergio Tacchini, the Italian sportswear company that dressed him in clothes with tattooed wings, dragons and stripes ... lots and lots of stripes. CNBC's Darren Rovell reports that the company couldn't keep up with the success of the world No. 1 after signing him to an incentive-laden 10-year deal in 2009.

One insider tells CNBC that there were constant fights between the Tacchini reps in Italy and the United States. Those battles were centered around disagreements over money owed by distributors, priority given to European stores on shipments, and suggested prices that priced out much of the marketplace. Tacchini polo shirts often retailed for $80, $20 more than a Nike tennis shirt of a similar make.

The world No. 1 being dressed in Sergio Tacchini was the equivalent of 2001 Britney Spears signing a deal with RC Cola. It never felt right. Peyton Manning endorses Oreos, not Hydrox, you know?

In memory of their glorious three years together, Busted Racquet remembers some of our favorite Sergio kits. May you fly even higher with your new dragon wings, Nole:

'

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As the sun rose across the United States on Monday morning, Rafael Nadal was ending Novak Djokovic's recent dominance over him, defeating the world No. 2 their rain delayed final at the Italian Open, 7-5, 6-3. With the victory, Nadal gave himself a badly-needed boost of confidence, reasserted his dominance on the clay courts he's owned for much of the last decade and moved to No. 2 in the ATP rankings, ensuring that he wouldn't see Djokovic until a possible French Open final. Or that's the narrative being spun for the tennis fans in the U.S. who weren't able to watch the 6 AM ET match.

All of it is true. Nadal was back to his virtuoso self on Rome's red clay and, watching him slide and defend, it was hard to remember last year when he didn't win a set in two clay court finals against Djokovic. But lost in the Nadal hoopla was something that is unlikely to be covered by a wire story or 30-second highlight package: For as good as Rafa was, Nole had opportunities to take control of the match.

The best was late in the first set at 30-30 on Nadal's serve and Djokovic leading 5-4. The world No. 1 hit a wicked forehand that appeared good, but was ruled wide. His potential set point turned into an easy Nadal hold and Djokovic never recovered. Replay showed the ball was clearly in.

Djokovic failed to convert multiple break point chances in the second set, including four in one game.

Nadal is the eternal favorite at Roland Garros and is expected to hoist his seventh trophy at the French Open. Monday may or may not have made that clearer.

World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka didn't get much sympathy for her retirement from the Italian Open. She didn't get any sympathy from the woman she currently leads in the rankings.

Maria Sharapova took blatant digs at her rival over the weekend, insinuating that Azarenka's injury retirements are dubious and never seem to have any long-term repercussions. The comments came after Azarenka won an opening-round match in Rome and then pulled out of the tournament, solely to avoid taking a zero for the mandatory tournament in the WTA rankings.

The world No. 2 criticized Azarenka's decision after defeating Venus Williams in a semifinal. Transcription courtesy SI.com's Beyond the Baseline:

"She's probably been injured more than any other player and yet is able to be No. 1 in the world. Last year she, I think, had more retirements than anyone but was still able to play a full schedule. A few days after retiring from an event she was practicing at the next tournament. It's pretty tough to know what her state is and how she's feeling."

"Personally, if I'm injured, no matter what the fine is, no matter how big or small, the body is the most important to me. If I'm not healthy enough to play, those are the rules. Yes, this is a tournament you have to compete in, yes, you might get zero points. But to be honest, I don't really care about that. My health is the most important thing."

As BTB notes, Sharapova has a point. Azarenka withdrew from the Italian Open last year and followed it up two weeks later with a semifinal appearance at Roland Garros. In the fall, she pulled out of a tournament in Beijing after one match, then went on to make the finals of the WTA championships.

Azarenka deserves blame and criticism for her bush-league treatment of the sport. Yet isn't the WTA at fault too? By making tournaments mandatory, it encourages this sort of behavior. The players shouldn't be put in a position to be forced to make a decision between sportsmanship and their livelihood. Having Madrid and Rome played in back-to-back weeks doesn't help anyone either.

Sharapova defeated Li Na 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) in Sunday's final in Rome. She moved within striking distance of Azarenka's top ranking and could regain No. 1 at next week's French Open.