Jannik Sinner aims to become the first man since Novak Djokovic to win three consecutive Australian Open titles in the Open Era, and the Italian is off to a positive start.
Weeks after winning the ATP Finals in Turin, Italy, the No. 2 player in the world picked up where he left off, beating Hugo Gaston in the opener yesterday. With momentum by his side, Sinner is expected to make at least a deep run in the tournament, and the Australian Open 2026 odds have him as the prohibitive favourite to win the first Grand Slam of the season, with Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev close by.
Speaking of Djokovic, the Serb is the No. 4-ranked player in the world and is also off to an auspicious start. On the other hand, fellow veteran Gael Monfils confirmed he has played his final Australian Open match.
Here are some of the latest Australian Open 2026 updates, courtesy of SBOTOP.
Sinner progresses after uneven start
Jannik Sinner strolled to the second round of the Australian Open after Hugo Gaston retired due to an abdominal injury. His image of consoling Gaston on the sidelines went viral for the right reasons, and Sinner will face Australian wild-card James Duckworth, with whom he has a 2-1 head-to-head record, next. If Sinner beats Duckworth, he’ll play Eliot Spizzirri or Yibing Wu in the third round.
Before Gaston called it quits, Sinner seized control of the match after an uneven start, falling 40-0 down on his serve in the first game before stringing together three aces to hold. After the early blip, Sinner won the first set in 37 minutes.
Gaston had to receive treatment between sets from his trainer, and when they resumed, Sinner tightened his grip on the contest. The Italian won the second with ease before shaking hands with his French counterpart. Sinner became only the fourth player since 2000 to register 15 consecutive wins in men’s singles at the Australian Open, joining Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic.
During the postgame presser, Sinner said he has been working on his serve, a shot he believes still needs improvement.
“I felt that the serve is, and still is, a shot I need to improve,” he admitted. “It’s the only shot where we can do everything ourselves, and there’s still a lot of room for improvement. It’s not a shot I feel very secure with yet, but we’re working on it.”
Djokovic hits new milestone in Melbourne
Novak Djokovic defeated Pedro Martinez on Monday to reach his 100th victory in the Australian Open – a feat he has also achieved at Wimbledon (102) and Roland Garros (101). During his post-match interview, the Serb was treated to a video tribute from his 2005 main-draw debut.
The 38-year-old delivered a serving masterclass against his Spanish counterpart. Djokovic only dropped five points out of 57 on serve across two hours. He also had eight holds to love, only lost one point in each of the second and third sets, and won 93-per cent behind his first serve – all while maintaining a solid first-serve percentage of roughly 77-per cent. He fittingly closed out Martinez with his 14th ace of the night to win 6-3, 6-2, 6-2.
Before dispatching Martinez, Djokovic pulled out of a warm-up event this month, as he wasn’t physically ready. His last competitive match was in early November, prevailing against Lorenzo Musetti in the Hellenic Championship final. The Serb showed no signs of rustiness or discomfort on Monday, and he’ll take on Italian qualifier Francesco Maestrelli in the next round.
In the bigger picture, Djokovic has his eyes on winning a record 25th Grand Slam, but he’ll need to gatecrash the duopoly of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner to break a tie with Margaret Court.
Monfils bids emotional farewell
Gael Monfils shared an emotional moment with the fans after making his final appearance in Melbourne on Tuesday. The 39-year-old lost 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4, 7-5 to home qualifier Dane Sweeny, and was then invited to address the crowd post-match.
“First of all, thank you so much. For me, my journey here with you guys started in 2003, when I came here for the first time,” Monfils stated. “Now we are in 2026, and somehow it is the finish line, but thank you so much for this amazing ride. You have been unbelievable, so thank you so much.”
Monfils will finish his career with a 37-20 record at Melbourne Park, where his best results were reaching the quarter-finals in 2016 and 2022.
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