Carlos Alcaraz, Janik Sinner, Novak Djokovic are 10 things to watch at Australian Open | ATP Tour

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Alcaraz, Sinner and Djokovic are the top ten highlights of the Australian Open

An executive summary of hard-court expertise every fan should know

January 17, 2026

There was no shortage of compelling stories at this year’s Australian Open, with Carlos Alcaraz, Yannick Sinner and Novak Djokovic all coming into the tournament with a firm eye on history.

Alcaraz is the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings and is seeking his first hard-court Grand Slam title – and with this victory, he will complete a career Grand Slam. Two-time defending champion Sinner and 10-time champion Djokovic are among the many contenders eager to halt the Spaniard’s charge.

ATPTour.com highlights 10 storylines from the 2026 Australian Open.

1) Alcaraz chases career grand slam: Alcaraz, who has yet to reach the quarter-finals in four previous Australian Open appearances, has made no secret of his ambition to lift the trophy in Melbourne. If he wins, the world No. 1 will become just the sixth man in the Open era to win at least one Grand Slam title in all four majors.

2) Can Sinner complete a hat trick? The two-time defending champion is trying to follow in Djokovic’s footsteps and become the only player in the Open era to win three consecutive Australian Open titles. Sinner has a 22-4 record at the event, with his most recent loss coming in the fourth round in 2023 to Stefanos Tsitsipas, according to the Infosys ATP Win-Loss Index.

3) Djokovic returns to the court:
Djokovic returns to his most successful Grand Slam with renewed motivation after an injury forced him to withdraw from last year’s semifinal against Alexander Zverev. The 38-year-old won his 101st Tour title in Athens last November and is chasing a 25th Grand Slam trophy, which would see him overtake Margaret Court on the all-time list.

4) Zverev continues to strive for his first Grand Slam:
A three-time Grand Slam finalist, Zverev continues to play a prominent role in the later stages of major tournaments, but the elusive breakthrough remains. The German, who finished runner-up to Sinner last year, will begin his match against the powerful Canadian Gabriel Diallo.

5) A resurgent Medvedev:
Daniil Medvedev looks rejuvenated after winning just one major tournament last year after finishing the 2025 season strong and opening the 2026 season with a title win in Brisbane. Medvedev, a former world No. 1 and three-time Melbourne finalist, could face long-time rival Zverev in the quarterfinals. He leads the Lexus ATP Head2Head series 14-8.

6) Australians’ hopes for their homeland:
Alex de Minaur, ranked a career-high No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings, is a local pioneer. The 26-year-old has been a participant in the past two Nitto ATP Finals, joining fellow Australians Alexei Popyrin, Adam Walton (first against Alcaraz) and James Duckworth in the main draw, while Jason Kubler advanced through the qualifying rounds.

7) #NextGen talent takes center stage:
Recent Next Generation ATP Finals champions Learner Tien and Joao Fonseca return as seeds No. 25 and No. 28 respectively. Last year, Tian defeated Medvedev in the fourth round, while Fonseca beat Andrei Rublev in stunning fashion. Joining them are 2025 Jeddah players Nicolai Budkov Kjaer, Rafael Jodar, Nishesh Basavareddy and Dino Prizmic, as well as 19-year-old Rei Sakamoto.

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8) Wawrinka Headline Wild Card:
Stan Wawrinka, who plans to retire at the end of the 2026 season, won the first of three Grand Slam titles in Melbourne in 2014 and returned this year as a wild card. Australia’s Jordan Thompson also enters as a wildcard and has not competed at tour level since October in Shanghai.

9) First round popcorn showdown:
De Minaur faces a direct challenge from former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini. World number eight Ben Shelton, who reached the semi-finals last year, will face Adelaide finalist Ugo Humbert, while Grigor Dimitrov vs. Tomas Machak adds to the three must-see first-round matches.

10) Kokkinakis/Kyrgios performance in doubles: Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool arrive as top seeds at the end of 2025, earning the year-end ATP Doubles No. 1 title from the PIF. The doubles lineup also includes 2022 Australian Open champions Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios, adding even more intrigue to the tournament.