CHENNAI: There is always some kind of romance surrounding the first Grand Slam of the year. The only Slam to be played on the other hemisphere of the world, has its own charm. The longest Grand Slam final between Novak Djokovic, who is defying age to play his 81st Grand Slam this year and another legend now-retired Rafael Nadal was played on this surface in 2012. The ebb and flow still resonates across the Rod Laver Arena as the match ended after a gruelling five sets in 5 hours 53 minutes. There were sobbing scenes when Roger Federer lifted the trophy at the age of 36 after making a stunning comeback from injury.
2026 is a different era, different time. New champions have started filling in the shoes left behind by some of the games' greatest. As another instalment of Australian Open gets under way on Sunday, the limelight would shift to two of tennis' most-loved players of this generation — Carlos Alcaraz (world No 1) and Jannik Sinner (No 2). Their fabled rivalry has yet to transcend into eternal greatness like those of Federer vs Nadal but as things stand, it does have the ingredients to become one. Last year they met four Grand Slam finals and shared two each. This year could be the same.
One of India's former No 1 player Somdev Devvarman would be watching and looking into the finer details of the Australian Open. And like the entire world, he too would be setting his eyes on the Spaniard and the Italian. "The way they have ended 2025, the fact that they have won nine of the last nine Slams, they are getting better and stronger. The current age where they are at historically tells us that they are only going to get better from here on," Devvarman said during an interaction.
The other spotlight would be on the Djokovic, who has won the highest number of Grand Slams in the world.
Devvarman felt that Djokovic's challenge may continue in 2026. The Serbian reached the semifinals in all Grand Slams but failed to reach the final for the first time since 2017. "The age that Djokovic tells us that things are going to start getting a little tougher physically and to keep up with the demands that the young guys are throwing at you. So, as a tennis fan you wonder, does Novak have one more left? If he does, does he need help from his peers, somebody to take them out? Does he need a little bit of luck? Or is it possible at all? Main question of men's tennis, at least for now," he said.
The records that both Sinner and Alcaraz boast of, Devvarman felt, indicate how they have been setting new limits to their game. "I think between them, they lost less than 15 matches in 2025, which is incredible. They are so far ahead of everybody else. It appears that they are pushing the limits to the new level. And I think the people on their heels are going to raise the bar as well," he said. "Both of them are already where they are, in double digit title wins. They have been fairly injury-free. The consistency that they have shown in the last 24 months has been remarkable. It's not that they are winning. They are winning comfortably. When Roger (Federer) first came on the tour, when Novak was dominating, when Rafael (Nadal) was dominating, they had an aura. I think it's a similar sort of aura. I'm not sure if the rest of the tour really believes that they can beat these guys. That is why they're pulling so far up ahead."
Devvarman added that it won't be long before somebody young comes along who believes that on any given day, they can beat one of these guys. "A few players have done it with Alcaraz. Less with Sinner," said Devvarman.
A few such names, Devvarman proposed could be 20-year-old Learner Tien, who won the ATP Next-Gen finals, and Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca, who has earned praise from the game's best. "Last year, nobody knew who Tien was. He is top 30 in the world right now and just won the next-gen finals. Fonseca is (also) around the top 30. Very different sort of players. Fonseca, I believe, can match Sinner and Alcaraz in terms of firepower. Not in terms of consistency or results, obviously. But in terms of pure ball-striking, firepower, athleticism, massive serving, big hitting of both sides, which is a big part of the modern game. The interesting part about this tournament is he is in the same section of the draw as Sinner," said the Arjuna awardee. "These guys are going to have enough of losing to them. I do expect Sinner and Alcaraz to dominate, at least for a short while now. But sooner rather than later, there are going to be people on their tail," he added.
Watch Australian Open 2026 starting from 18th January, 2026 live on Sony Sports Ten 5 (SD & HD), Sony Sports Ten 2 (SD), Sony Sports Ten 3 Hindi (SD & HD), Sony Sports Ten 4 Tamil & Sony Sports Ten 4 Telugu channels.
