Who’s Poised for a Better Follow-up to Their Record-Breaking 2026 Australian Open Final?
In the wake of a historic Australian Open and Roland Garros on the horizon, the 2026 tennis season is off to an interesting start, leaving fans and experts wondering who the major players will be this year. Recently, the men’s tennis scene has been dominated by two names: Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. In 2024 and 2025, every single Grand Slam in men’s singles was won by either Sinner or Alcaraz. The two were seen as the undisputed best players of this current era and were poised to stay that way. Arguments over which player was better didn’t have a definitive answer, as there was no way to definitively make a conclusion. To help answer that question, enter Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic is the most decorated men’s tennis player of all time, earning 24 Grand Slams, the most in tennis history. At 38 years old, he is the oldest tennis player ranked in the top 10. Ranked third in the world, behind Alcaraz and Sinner, going into 2026, there was no doubt that Novak was still good, but his chances of getting to the finals of a Grand Slam again were slim. Then at the Australian Open earlier this year, Djokovic proved everyone wrong by getting to the finals after beating Sinner, the reigning champ of the tournament, in the semis. This is very on brand for Novak, who has a reputation for playing his best when the fans count him out. The best example of this was at 2019’s Wimbledon, where Djokovic defeated Roger Federer, the men’s player with the most wins at Wimbledon, in the upset of the year.
Qualifying for the Australian Open Finals made Djokovic the oldest men’s player to make it to the finals of a Grand Slam. Ultimately, Novak lost to Alcaraz in the tournament, a historic win as the title made Alcaraz the youngest men’s Tennis player to complete a calendar slam. This showing from Djokovic at the Australian Open raises a few questions about the state of Tennis: Does Djokovic still have a chance at winning another Grand Slam title? Is Alcaraz definitely the best player of this era? Finally, what does this mean for the 2026 tennis season?
With the Indian Wells Open currently underway, it’s interesting to see where things go for Alcaraz, Djokovic, and Sinner in the lead-up to the French Open. There are still many Masters 1000 tournaments on the horizon until then, and the trends that will show between Grand Slams are telling. There hasn’t been a major tournament since the Australian Open, so the results of the Indian Wells Open will help set a standard for what's to come this season, but may not be indicative of the results of Roland Garros specifically. Indian Wells, similar to Australia, takes place on hard courts, unlike France, which takes place on clay. Alcaraz is particularly comfortable on clay courts, whereas Roland Garros is the slam that Djokovic has won the least. Admittedly, Djokovic winning three titles at Roland Garros is nothing to scoff at.
That is to say, Novak’s specialty has always been hard court, holding the most Grand Slam wins on a hard court in history. Expecting him to do well in the Indian Wells Open is not a gamble: it's assured in the wake of the Australian Open. This isn’t to say either Alcaraz or Sinner isn’t great on hard courts either, as they have proven over the last few years. However, this tournament will still show Djokovic giving them a run for their money and maybe even winning. Alcaraz and Sinner are still likely to dominate the big titles this season, but expect Novak to swing strongly this season and potentially win some Masters 1000 titles on the way. After all, Novak always does best when he is counted out.
