Australian Open 2026: Top contenders for men’s singles title
The new tennis season is about to get underway, with all eyes on the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open.
Last year, the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park witnessed a record crowd turnout both in the men’s and women’s categories. The men’s singles final was played between defending champion Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev, with Sinner retaining his crown in an emphatic manner, winning the final in straight sets.
The new season will bring new challenges for all players. What will be more interesting to see, though, is whether there are players who can get close to the two best men’s players in the world.
Here, we present our pick of the top contenders for the men’s singles title at the 2026 Australian Open.
Jannik Sinner
Two-time Australian Open champion, also the defending champion, World No. 2 Jannik Sinner will again be the favourite at Melbourne Park. Though he lost to Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open, where also he was the undeniable favourite, he made up for it with a title win at the year-ending ATP Finals, getting the better of his arch-rival in Turin.
Sinner’s record on hard courts over the past few years has been quite phenomenal, and even with off-court issues troubling the Italian in the first half of the season, he showed incredible mental fortitude last year to win two Grand Slams and the ATP Finals, capping off another successful campaign.
The additional advantage for Sinner is coaching stability, given his coach Darren Cahill has decided to continue with him in 2026, despite having decided earlier to leave at the end of 2025.
Over the past few years, Sinner has felt at home on the hard courts of Melbourne Park. Therefore, he remains our prime contender to take the Australia Open singles title home yet again.
Carlos Alcaraz
The current World No. 1 ended the 2025 season on a high, winning two Grand Slam titles, three ATP Masters 1000 titles, and a final appearance at the ATP Finals. He also defended his French Open crown and defeated Jannik Sinner on the US Open hard courts, which must have boosted his confidence for the Australian Open.
However, Alcaraz parted ways with his long-time coach Juan Carlos Ferrero in December, which raised quite a few eyebrows. This could lead to Alcaraz being a little shaky early on in the tournament, but we are all also aware of his powers of recovery.
The Australian Open crown is the only Grand Slam title missing from Alcaraz’s already burgeoning silverware stash, one that will complete his career Grand Slam — an added motivation to go all out. If Alcaraz reaches the final this time around, expect him to take his first Australian Open title home.
Alexander Zverev
Alexander Zverev has won most big tournaments to prove his prodigious talent, barring any of the Grand Slams, which are considered the pinnacle of the sport. However, Zverev fared better at the Slams last year, making it to the Australian Open men’s singles final, though he came up against an inspired Jannik Sinner, who demolished him in straight sets to defend his crown.
Zverev does possess the game to beat anyone; it’s just his mentality that needs an uplift to help him cross the finishing line. He even defeated Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals of the 2024 Australian Open.
In the last two years, Zverev has reached the semi-final and the final of the “Happy Slam”, exhibiting his improvement and progression at the tournament. Hence, he is another strong contender for the men’s singles title at Melbourne Park this time around.
Novak Djokovic
When talking about the contenders for the title, the ten-time Australian Open champion simply cannot be ignored. Even though he has not reached a Grand Slam final since the 2024 Wimbledon final, Djokovic is still the third-best player in the world and capable of defeating everyone — apart from Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
That said, Djokovic did manage to beat Alcaraz in the quarter-finals of last year’s Australian Open, where he failed to continue due to injury issues and had to forfeit the semi-final against Zverev. He reached the semi-finals of the other three Grand Slams last season as well, losing to Sinner twice and Alcaraz once. This is proof enough that the Serbian legend can still challenge for the biggest titles.
To write the Djoker off would be blasphemy. If he can somehow avoid Sinner or Alcaraz in this tournament, he has a great chance to win an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam title on his most favoured surface.
Felix Auger-Aliassime
Felix Auger-Aliassime ended the 2025 season in superb fashion, breaking into the top ten ATP singles rankings on the back of his performances. He reached the semi-finals of the US Open and the ATP Finals, as well as the final of the Paris Masters, proving his ability and talent yet again.
Auger-Aliassime had a breakthrough year in 2021, when he reached his first Wimbledon quarter-final and a first US Open semi-final, along with other noticeable results that helped him break into the ATP top ten rankings. The 25-year-old also likes hard courts, and his performances on them have been great in recent times as well. Moreover, he has the guile, athleticism, power, and ability to trouble even the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz when he is on song.
Based on his current form, results, and talent, Auger-Aliassime has an outside chance to lift his first Grand Slam trophy at Melbourne Park this time around.
