Nadal handed kind draw, Federer and Djokovic set for rematch

Saturday, 26 May 2012 00:38 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

PARIS (Reuters): Six-times champion Rafa Nadal was handed a smooth looking path to the French Open final on Friday, avoiding the half of the draw featuring world number one Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer who are seeded to meet in the semi-finals.

The Spanish second seed, who appeared back to his awe-inspiring best on clay in Rome earlier this month after an unfortunate slip-up on the Madrid blue surface, could face Briton Andy Murray in the semi-final.

The defending champion will need, however, to keep his guard up in a first-round encounter with Italian Simone Bolelli before a likely match against claycourt specialist Juan Monaco of Argentina in the third round.

The French Open starts on Sunday.