Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have been drawn in the same half of a Grand Slam for the first time in history after the French Open was set on Thursday.

The draws means there would be no repeat of last year’s final with record thirteen-time champion Nadal and Djokovic on course for an explosive semi-final in Paris due to the strict adherence of the seeding process to the current rankings.

Russian Daniil Medvedev who has struggled on clay this year headlines the other half of the draw as world number two.

Federer, No 8 in the semi-frozen listings in spite of having played so little, could meet Djokovic in the quarter final, if he got that far.

The pairing of the Big Three means younger players stand a strong chance of making the final at Roland Garros with Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alex Zverev all in the opposite half.

In the women’s draw for the tournament that starts on Sunday, Australian world number one Ashleigh Barty starts against 70th-ranked American Bernarda Pera.

Japanese second seed Naomi Osaka, who says she will not speak to the media during the tournament, faces Romania’s Patricia Maria Tig.

Polish teenager Iga Swiatek opens her defence of the title against her close friend Kaja Juvan of Slovenia, while last year’s runner-up Sofia Kenin faces 2017 champion Jelena Ostapenko.

Serena Williams, bidding for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title, starts against Romania’s world number 74 Irina-Camelia Begu.