World number ones Sabalenka, Alcaraz begin Australian Open campaigns

The first round of the Australian Open begins in Melbourne on Sunday.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz, who could complete a career Grand Slam if he wins the tournament, faces Adam Walton, while Aryna Sabalenka takes on Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah as she seeks a third title at Melbourne Park.

At 22, Alcaraz ‍could replace Don ‌Budge as the youngest man to achieve the career Grand Slam with victory at the Australian Open. The Spaniard ‍has left no one in any doubt what his main goal is for the 2026 season, saying in November he would rather win a first Melbourne Park crown than retain his French and US Open titles.

His quest to make ‍history will begin with a first-round tie against Australian Walton.

The pair have crossed paths once before, with Alcaraz beating ‍the Australian 6-4 7-6(4) during his title-winning run at the Queen’s Club Championships last year.

Sabalenka will be bidding to continue her incredible record in hard court Grand Slam tournaments when she begins her campaign against Frenchwoman Rakotomanga Rajaonah.

The Belarusian world number one has reached the final of the last six majors she has played on the surface, winning four of those.

She enters the competition in fine form ‌after retaining her Brisbane International title this month without losing a set, and should have little ‍trouble when she takes on the 118th-ranked Rakotomanga Rajaonah.

Venus Williams, a two-times Australian Open singles finalist, returns to the tournament for the first time since 2021 after receiving a wildcard.

The 45-year-old faces Olga Danilovic in ​the first round, where she is set to become the oldest woman to feature in the Australian Open main draw by surpassing Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44 when she bowed out in the first round in 2015.

Williams has endured a ​poor start ‍to the season, losing to Magda Linette in the first round in Auckland and to Tatjana Maria in ‌her opening match at the Hobart International.

Despite her defeats, she said she was happy with her level.

“I can’t expect perfection right now, but I know I’m playing good tennis. Winning and losing doesn’t know any age. Once you walk on ​court, you’re there ‌to compete,” Williams said before her defeat in Hobart.

Meanwhile, Russian-born Daria Kasatkina said she is ready to embrace the “good pressure” of a home Grand Slam when she steps onto the Melbourne Park court as an Australian citizen for the first time.

The 28-year-old played on the tour as a neutral athlete after Russian players were banned from ‍competing under ‌their own flag following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Having found herself thrust into the political spotlight, Kasatkina ‍became one of the few Russian-born players to publicly criticise the war, before a pathway to permanent residency in Australia opened up last March.

Kasatkina, who has not returned to Russia since coming out as ‍gay in 2022, posted on social media on Saturday that she had been officially confirmed as ‍a full citizen and can expect a warm reception from local fans at the year’s opening Grand Slam which begins on Sunday.

“This is good pressure, so I’d choose this compared to what I’ve been through in the past couple of years,” Kasatkina told reporters on Saturday.

“For the first time I’m going to play in front of such a big home crowd, so that’s going to be ‌special. I have to manage my nerves, because I’ve never been in this situation ‍before.

“But I’m super proud and it’s an extremely positive change. The whole of last year has been a year of transition, which brought me to where I am right now.”

Agencies