Monday, February 02, 2026

An Amazing Australian Open

Carlos Alcaraz just made history by winning the Australian Open. He defeated Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 in the finals. He had already previously won each of the other major titles so winning the Australian Open completes his set. He achieved this at the age of 22 years and 272 days, making him the youngest person to achieve the career Grand Slam.

This is also the first time in his massively illustrious career that Novak Djokovic lost an Australian Open final. In fact, before this year, he had not lost a single semifinal or final that he played. That record was under threat in the semifinal when he faced Jannik Sinner but he managed to overcome a 2 sets to 1 deficit to snap a 5-game losing streak to the Italian. His triumph prevented a fourth consecutive Alcaraz-Sinner major final. It's amazing to think that even at 38 years old, Djokovic is still better than almost everyone else on the ATP tour.

Since we are talking about records and history, I thought I'd share these bits of trivia. I would like to add that while Carlos Alcaraz eclipsed the record previously held by Don Budge, Don actually won the Grand Slam in 1938, winning all majors in the same year. He was the first person, male or female to do so. Rod Laver was 24 years old when he achieved the career Grand Slam but he did it all in the same year as well - 1962 - making him the second man to win the Grand Slam. In fact, Rod Laver remains to be the only player to have won two Grand Slams, first in 1962 and then again in 1969. Many women also achieved their career grand slams at a younger age, including Maureen Connolly and Steffi Graf, both of whom won the Grand Slam at ages 18 and 19 respectively.

On the women's side, Elena Rybakina defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to win her first Australian Open title. This also marks her second major title, adding to her Wimbledon trophy back in 2022. Elena seemed to be struggling for the most part of 2025 but she found her form close to the end of the year, winning the WTA finals. She managed to remain at that level in Melbourne, where she only dropped one set in the entire tournament (and only to Sabalenka in the final). Hopefully, this second Grand Slam title gives her greater confidence and a stronger championship mettle to help her win more majors.

Congratulations, Carlos and Elena!
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