Carlos Alcaraz claimed his second Grand Slam title at the 2026 Australian Open (ATP), defeating Novak Djokovic 2–6, 6–2, 6–3, 7–5 in a dominant final that saw the Spaniard recover from a set down to overpower the defending champion. On the women's side, Elena Rybakina pulled off a stunning three-set victory over Aryna Sabalenka at the 2026 Australian Open (WTA), winning 4–6, 6–4, 4–6 to claim her maiden hard-court major and snap Sabalenka's consecutive Australian Open titles. The fortnight was marked by a series of upsets in the early rounds, with several top-15 seeds falling to unranked or lower-ranked challengers: Nikola Bartunkova toppled Belinda Bencic in the round of 64, while Arthur Fery, Arthur Gea, Zeynep Sonmez, and Elsa Jacquemot each engineered first-round upsets over higher-ranked opponents including Flavio Cobolli, Jiri Lehecka, Ekaterina Alexandrova, and Marta Kostyuk respectively. The tour's attention now turns to the 2026 Abu Dhabi (WTA) 500 event, which gets underway next week.
This week in tennis
Jan 19
Alcaraz wins Australian Open; Rybakina tops Sabalenka in upset
By the Mob Tennis teamArchive
Past weekly recaps
- Sep 21Davis Cup qualifiers advance Germany, Britain, Australia into Finals
- Sep 15Zverev claims second major at US Open; Rybakina tops rankings
- Sep 14Zverev claims second Grand Slam at US Open, ending Shelton's home hopes
- Sep 13Rybakina captures first US Open, reclaims world No. 1 from Sabalenka
- Sep 11Rybakina to dethrone Sabalenka in US Open final
- Sep 10Shelton stuns Alcaraz in epic night; Rybakina claims world No. 1
- Sep 9Tiafoe's Epic Comeback Leads US Open Quarterfinal Drama
- Sep 8Rybakina storms toward No. 1; Gauff and Zheng roll at US Open