Nadal to face French qualifier, weather permitting

By Julien Pretot

PARIS (Reuters) - World number two Rafael Nadal will be on court for the third consecutive day on Thursday when he faces French qualifier Nicolas Devilder in the French Open second round.

The muscular Spaniard, bidding to equal Swede Bjorn Borg's record of four successive Roland Garros titles, is expected to advance although heavy rain is forecast.

Nadal, who is scheduled to play second on Suzanne Lenglen court and complained he had to wait in the locker room until 2000 on Tuesday, could spend a lot more time waiting around.

That could also be the case for top-ranked Roger Federer, third on Centre Court against Spaniard Albert Montanes.

Fans who have paid for a Court One ticket will hope to watch an all-Russian clash between former world number one Marat Safin and fourth seed Nikolay Davydenko.

In the women's draw, world number one Maria Sharapova takes on American qualifier Bethanie Mattek while third seed Jelena Jankovic of Serbia opens proceedings on Suzanne Lenglen court against New Zealander Marina Erakovic.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot, editing by Tony Jimenez)