With Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek And Madison Keys By sharing the four Grand Slam titles last season, women’s tennis today offers much more intrigue than the ” Sincaraz “domination in men’s football.
Indeed, seven of the last nine years have ended with different champions at each major tournament.
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No. 1 in the ranking Carlos Alcarazwho plays their first round match at Melbourne Park when the action begins on Sunday, and twice on defense Australian Open Champion Jannik Sinner, meanwhile, has teamed up to win the last eight men’s Grand Slam trophies.
They have even met in the last three major finals – making 2025 the first season since 1964, when Roy Emerson and Fred Stolle did so, that the same two men have faced each other in three Grand Slam title matches.
“The rivalry with Alcaraz and Sinner is great,” said an authority like Roger Federer.
Alcaraz and Sinner faced each other six times last year, each in the final (Alcaraz won four).
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Compare that with No. 1 Sabalenka and No. 2 Swiatek, whose only meeting in 2025 came in the French Open semifinals.
“Actually, it’s not just about me and Iga. It’s about Coco, Elena (Rybakina), Jessica (Pegula). I don’t want to forget anyone at the moment,” said Sabalenka, who won the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024 and plays on Sunday. “It’s crazy to think we only played once last year.”
Here’s what else you need to know about the 2026 Australian Open, the event of the season first major tennis tournament:
Players always want more money and more say at Grand Slams
Every Grand Slam event that takes place tends to offer record prizes, and that’s the case at the 2026 Australian Open, where it’s up 16% from 2025 to around $75 million.
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Tennis players seek more, increased benefits and a greater say in how things are run to the four most prestigious – and lucrative – tournaments.
Keys, the reigning champion in Melbourne, said she was “cautiously optimistic” of further gains.
“We all need each other,” she said.
Gauff said players “are grateful for the progress that has been made,” but noted, “The percentage…of revenue…is still not where we would like it to be.”
Serena Williams hasn’t returned, but Venus is in Australia
Serena WilliamsThe 44-year-old sparked interest in a possible comeback by signing up for the sport’s doping program – a condition of returning from retirement – but posted on social media that she had no plans to compete again. Her older sister Venus45 years old, never announced his departure and resumed the tour last July after 16 months of absence; the Australian Open is her second Grand Slam tournament in a row.
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Venus, who recently got married, has not played at Melbourne Park since a second round defeat in 2021; this will be his 22nd participation in the draw. Her opponent on Sunday is Olga Danilovic.
Stan Wawrinka plays his final year on tour
There’s no way of knowing how much longer seven-time major singles champion Venus Williams will stay there, but another owner of multiple Grand Slam titles, 40, Stan Wawrinkasays this is his last season.
Like Williams, Wawrinka received a wild card from Tennis Australia.
“It wasn’t a difficult decision at all. It was quite easy,” Wawrinka said of retiring after 2026.
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He won the 2014 Australian Open, the 2015 French Open and the 2016 US Open, beating Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic at each final.
3 players expected to challenge Alcaraz and Sinner are sidelined
After the Big Three of Federer-Nadal-Djokovic became famous, people are wondering who could step up to challenge the dominance of Alcaraz and Sinner. Three young people considered as possible suitors: Holger Rune, Jack Draper and Arthur Sons – all face lengthy injury absences and will miss the Australian Open.
Rune, a 22-year-old Dane ranked No. 4 and a three-time major quarterfinalist, ruptured his left Achilles tendon in October.
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Draper, a 24-year-old Briton ranked No. 4 and a 2024 US Open semifinalist, has played only two matches since early July due to bone bruising in his left arm.
Son, a 21-year-old Frenchman ranked No. 14 and having reached the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2024, has competed in one tournament since withdrawing before a French Open match in May due to a stress fracture in his lower back.
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AP Sports Writer John Pye in Melbourne, Australia, contributed to this report.
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis editor since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
