The first tennis Grand Slam main draw of 2026 begins in Melbourne, with top seeds Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka defying early concerns to reach the second round of the Australian Open.
Alcaraz was pushed into the second round by home qualifier Adam Walton, despite the world number one winning in straight sets on Sunday.
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The Spaniard won 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 in two hours and five minutes to begin his quest for a first Australian Open title, a career Grand Slam.
The reigning French Open and US Open champion hit eight aces and 38 winners to set up a second-round clash with Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann.
But he also committed 36 unforced errors, more than his opponent who ranked 81st.
He has not made it past the quarter-finals on four trips to Australia, losing at that stage last year to Novak Djokovic and the year before that to Alexander Zverev.
If his drought in Australia ends, Alcaraz will become the youngest player to complete a career Grand Slam, surpassing retired compatriot Rafael Nadal, who won all four majors by the age of 24.
He also becomes the youngest player to win seven Grand Slams in the British Open era since 23-year-old Bjorn Borg.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka, who made many mistakes, got off to a good start in her quest for the title with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over French wildcard Tiensoa Rakotomanga Lajaona.
The world number one, aiming to win Melbourne for the third time in four years, will next face Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova or Chinese qualifier Bai Zhuoxuan.
“I didn’t have the best start, but she played great. It was a tricky start,” said Sabalenka, who lost in last year’s final.
The 27-year-old Belarusian, fresh off a win in the season opener against the Brisbane International, had a disappointing start, conceding the first three points of the match on serve.
In front of a watching Roger Federer, Sabalenka recovered to deuce, but in front of a shocked Rod Laver Arena, she misfired again and dropped the game.
Sabalenka, who is favorite to add a fifth Grand Slam title to her career, has fallen back to that level, but if you were hoping the feisty world No. 118 would disappear, it didn’t happen anytime soon.
The reigning US Open champion fired a forehand into the 20-year-old’s head to apologize to his 4-4 opponent.
Sabalenka’s errors were increasing, but she ultimately overcame Rajona’s resistance to take the first set and easily home in the second.
“I was very happy to find my level,” said Sabalenka, who made 13 unforced errors in the first set.
“It’s always difficult to play young people, strangers and lefties.”
Earlier, Zverev, last year’s runner-up behind Jannik Sinner, overcame a slow start to beat Gabriel Diallo 6-7 (7), 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the afternoon match to advance to the second round for the 10th consecutive year.
“Obviously, when I saw the draw, I wasn’t too happy, to be honest,” he said of the difficult challenge presented by Diallo, who is ranked 41st. “He’s very young, very talented, incredibly aggressive.
“I think the first set wasn’t my best tennis. After that it got a lot better for me.”
Seventh seed Jasmin Paolini defeated Aliaksandra Sasnovic 6-1, 6-2, while 12th seeds Elina Svitolina and Maria Sakkari also advanced in straight sets.
Former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrosova withdrew before her scheduled first round match due to a shoulder injury, leaving lucky loser Taylor Townsend in the draw to face Haley Baptiste, who won 6-3, 6-7 (3), 6-3.
Francis Tiafoe dominated Jason Kubler 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-2, and Michael Jen defeated Sebastian Korda 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (0), 6-3 in the first round of the U.S. Finals at Kia Arena.
Chung will next face No. 32 Corentin Moutet, who was booed after serving under match point in his 6-4, 7-6 (1), 6-3 win over Tristan Schoolkeit.
Flavio Cobolli, number 20, became the first seeded male player to be eliminated from the tournament, losing 7-6 (1), 6-4, 6-1 to British qualifier Arthur Ferry.
In another highly anticipated match, former champion Venus Williams was given a wild card by tournament organizers and was unable to advance.
Olga Danilovic defeated Williams 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4 after Serbia fought back from a 4-0 deficit in the deciding set to knock out the American veteran.
Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam champion who returned to tennis last season after a 16-month break, returned to the tournament for the first time in five years and became the oldest woman ever to qualify for the singles main draw.
