The 2026 tennis season began last Friday, with the ATP and WTA tours launching in Australia, New Zealand, and Hong Kong ahead of the year’s first Grand Slam in Melbourne. Despite players’ complaints about an overloaded calendar, the non-stop schedule promises plenty of drama and storylines throughout the year.

The Career Grand Slam Chase

Three players are just one major away from completing a Career Grand Slam. On the men’s side, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the clear frontrunners. Alcaraz, who has six majors (2x French Open, 2x Wimbledon, 2x US Open), seeks his first Australian Open title to become the youngest man in the Open Era to achieve the Career Slam.

“Winning Australia alone would mean more to me than two Grand Slams,” Alcaraz admitted late last year. Yet he has never reached the Australian Open quarter-finals, leaving the door open for Sinner, who has four majors and only the French Open eluding him, to possibly complete his set first.

In the women’s game, world number two Iga Swiatek mirrors Alcaraz’s quest, needing an Australian Open title to complete her Career Grand Slam. With six majors already (4x French Open, 1x Wimbledon, 1x US Open), the Pole would become only the ninth woman to win every major. Last year, she fell just short in a semi-final thriller against Madison Keys.

The ‘Sincaraz’ Duopoly

Men’s tennis in 2025 was dominated by Alcaraz and Sinner, who met in six finals and split the eight Grand Slams. The gap to the rest is immense: world number three Alexander Zverev trails Sinner by over 6,000 points, while other young talents—Jack Draper, Ben Shelton, Holger Rune, Arthur Fils—have yet to break through consistently.

Even at 38, Novak Djokovic remains a formidable presence. Semi-finalist at all four Slams in 2025 and holder of 101 career titles, he is still chasing a 25th Grand Slam to surpass Margaret Court’s all-time record. However, bridging the gap to Alcaraz and Sinner will be a tough challenge.

A Competitive WTA Tour

While men’s tennis has a clear hierarchy, the women’s tour remains wide open. Four different players won the 2025 Grand Slams (Madison Keys, Coco Gauff, Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka), and the WTA Finals went to Elena Rybakina, who defeated Sabalenka in the final. Other contenders include Naomi Osaka, Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini, and rising stars Victoria Mboko, Iva Jovic, Tereza Valentova, and Mirra Andreeva, who captured two WTA 1000 titles.

Amanda Anisimova’s Grand Slam Hunt

Amanda Anisimova emerged as one of the most captivating stories on the WTA Tour in 2025. After a mental health break in 2023 and a cautious return in 2024, she captured her first two WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Beijing and reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals. Despite heartbreaks—most notably a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Swiatek in Wimbledon—her resilience shone through, defeating Swiatek twice at the US Open and WTA Finals and besting Sabalenka in a thrilling Wimbledon semi-final.

Now ranked world number four, Anisimova starts her 2026 season in Brisbane and looks ready to chase her maiden Grand Slam crown. If her upward trajectory continues, a breakthrough seems imminent.