What to look for Wednesday at the French Open

CHRIS LEHOURITES
AP Sports Writer

PARIS (AP) — Five things to look for Wednesday at the French Open:

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WILLIAMS SQUARED: Serena and Venus Williams will get back on court in the second round of the French Open on Wednesday, with a sister vs. sister meeting in the next round a distinct possibility.

Serena, the defending champion and top-seeded player, will face Garbine Muguruza of Spain on Court Suzanne Lenglen. On the main court, Venus will take on Anna Schmiedlova of Slovakia.

Venus, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, is seeded only 29th at Roland Garros. The luck of the draw — or unluck of the draw — put her in the same side as Serena, a 17-time major champion.

“We play each other, we both try to bring our best game just like in other matches, and I think we both know we have to play even better because it’s against each other,” Venus said after winning her opening match on Sunday.

The last time the sisters met at a major tournament was in the 2009 Wimbledon final. Serena won.

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JOKING DJOKOVIC: Novak Djokovic might get a chance to renew his relationship with his ball-boy buddy in the second round.

Djokovic, who is known for sense of humor as well as his tennis skill, sat and chatted with a ball boy during a brief rain break in his first-round match. He later said he hoped the same ball boy would be back for his next match.

If the young man is from France, he may have a hard time cheering for Djokovic on Wednesday because the second-seeded Serb will be up against French player Jeremy Chardy.

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MARIA’S MACAROONS: If Maria Sharapova needed an extra boost for her second-round match against Tsvetana Pironkova, she may look for inspiration from the nearest bakery.

The 2012 French Open champion is an avowed fan of macaroons, and said Monday her mood can influence how many she eats.

“I usually allow myself a couple here and there, but on tougher occasions I allow myself more than usual,” Sharapova said after winning her opening match.

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FATHER FEDERER: With or without his twin daughters in the stands, Roger Federer has to get back to work Wednesday at the French Open.

Federer won his opening match at Roland Garros with his girls watching a bit of the action. On Wednesday, he’ll be back on court to face Diego Sebastian Schwartzman of Argentina.

Federer won the French Open title in 2009 to complete a career Grand Slam. But he lost in the quarterfinals last year and in 2010, in the semifinals in 2012 and in the final in 2011.

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ON SCHEDULE: Despite a rain-filled forecast and a couple of delays because of showers, the schedule at the French Open is almost completely caught up.

There was only one singles match that had to be pushed to Day 4 of the clay-court Grand Slam tournament, between Steve Johnson of the U.S. and Laurent Lokoli of France.

Johnson was leading 4-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 6-3, 3-1 when play was suspended Tuesday because of darkness.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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