Henin seeks third straight title at Roland Garrros
Two-time defending champion Justine Henin of Belgium will open her quest for a third straight French Open title against Elena Vesnina of Russia.
Maria Sharapova, seeded second in the tournament draw, announced Friday, will meet Emilie Loit of France in her opener.
Sharapova has missed two tournaments this year with a right shoulder injury but has shown a return to form this week at the Istanbul Cup in Turkey.
Should Henin and No. 8 seed Serena Williams advance through the draw, they would meet in the quarterfinals.
Williams will face Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria.
Williams, who won the Australian Open, is looking for her second French Open title and first since 2002.
"The French Open is my No. 1 priority," the eight-time Grand Slam winner said.
Third-ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova plays Ekaterina Bychkova and No. 4 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia -- who has reached at least the quarterfinals in 11 of 14 tournaments this season -- plays wild card Stephanie Foretz of France.
Fifth-ranked Amelie Mauresmo opens against American Laura Granville. Mauresmo, formerly the top-ranked player, has not advanced beyond the quarterfinals at Roland Garros. Her two Grand Slam titles came at the Australian Open and Wimbledon last year.
The tournament begins Sunday and ends June 10.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
