Grand Slam | DD News

January 16, 2026 11:46 PM

Madison Keys ready to soak up ‘pinch-me moments’ as defending Australian Open champion

Madison Keys is soaking up the fun parts of returning to the Australian Open as defending champion and the American said on Friday she is eager to get a photo with her name in the champions' tunnel to send to her mother. Keys, who captured her first Grand Slam title at the tournament last year, said she was still getting used to the surreal experience of seeing herself immortalised around Melbourne Park. "There's a really cool photo of me holding the trophy. Getting to see those, it's somethin...

January 16, 2026 2:57 PM

Players welcome Grand Slam prize money boost but vow to push for more

The Australian Open will offer a record A$111.5 million ($74.73 million) in prize money this year and while players welcomed the increase, top names like Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka said the push for a bigger payout must continue across the Grand Slams. The world's top players wrote a letter to the Grand Slams calling for significant improvements in prize money in April last year. The French Open ($65.42 million) and Wimbledon ($71.60 million) boosted their prize pots last year, although th...

January 16, 2026 2:56 PM

Iga Swiatek blocks out career slam chatter, refuses draw spoilers at Australian Open

Iga Swiatek has dismissed suggestions the career slam is driving her Australian Open campaign this year, with the world number two saying on Friday that she tries to block out outside noise and focus only on "grinding match by match". A six-times major winner with titles at the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, Swiatek has yet to clear the semi-final hurdle at Melbourne Park. Although the Polish 24-year-old acknowledged the milestone would be special, she refused to make it her primary...

January 15, 2026 2:37 PM

Madison Keys braces for defending champion pressure at Australian Open

Madison Keys said she was preparing to handle the added scrutiny of returning to the Australian Open as defending champion, while fellow American Coco Gauff appears poised to make a deep run when the season's first Grand Slam begins on Sunday. Keys sealed her long-awaited major breakthrough under the lights at Melbourne Park last year, beating Aryna Sabalenka in a gripping final to deny the world number one a third straight Australian Open crown. Keys now says her priority is ensuring she is m...

January 15, 2026 2:34 PM

Top trio eye Grand Slam glory with Aryna Sabalenka targeting third Australian Open crown

Australian Open favourite Aryna Sabalenka headlines a powerful cast of characters at Melbourne Park along with Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff as they look to shape the early-season narrative at the year's opening Grand Slam. While the women's game has been more open than the men's in recent years, the trio sparked a shift in momentum by sweeping nine of the last 12 Grand Slams and Sabalenka will head to Melbourne bidding for her third Australian Open crown. In addition to claiming a fifth Grand Sl...

January 14, 2026 2:40 PM

Sebastian Ofner’s premature celebration costs him Australian Open spot in epic collapse

Sebastian Ofner may never forget the rules of the sport again after his premature victory celebration turned into a nightmare collapse against Nishesh Basavareddy in the Australian Open qualifiers on Wednesday. Austrian Ofner looked destined for the next round when he surged to a commanding 6-1 lead in the deciding set tiebreak against 20-year-old American Basavareddy. But after winning another point to move 7-1 ahead, Ofner began celebrating and walked confidently toward the net - apparently ...

January 13, 2026 6:46 PM

Record seeker Novak Djokovic faces ‘New Two’ roadblock at Australian Open

Novak Djokovic returns to Melbourne Park looking to roll back the apparently inexorable tide of the "Sincaraz" era and produce an Australian Open triumph that would establish him as the most successful Grand Slam champion of all time. The Serbian clinched his 24th major title at the U.S. Open in late 2023, but Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have since dominated the Grand Slams with a brand of fast-paced tennis that has blown their rivals off the court. Djokovic, who will be 39 in May, is not...

January 13, 2026 5:43 PM

Carlos Alcaraz eyes Australian Open crown to complete career Slam

World number one Carlos Alcaraz arrives in Melbourne with only one mission in mind - claim a first Australian Open title to become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam. The 22-year-old already owns titles at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, and victory at Melbourne Park would see him eclipse Don Budge, who wrapped up the career Slam two days before his 23rd birthday by winning the 1938 French Open. "I would rather win my first Australian Open than retain my French Open...

January 13, 2026 5:23 PM

Dark horses or also-rans? Australian Open short on genuine contenders

The Australian Open may crown Jannik Sinner champion for a third straight year or hand Carlos Alcaraz a career Grand Slam, but lurking in the shadows are a handful of players grappling with harsh truths about their title chances at Melbourne Park. Novak Djokovic's quest for a record-extending 11th Australian Open title appears a long shot, with the Serb still searching for one more major title that would establish him as the most successful Grand Slam champion of all time. At 38, Djokovic is i...

September 1, 2025 9:53 AM

Djokovic makes Grand Slam history with commanding US Open win

Novak Djokovic made Grand Slam history at the age of 38 on Sunday with a commanding 6-3 6-3 6-2 victory over Jan-Lennard Struff, but the triumph came at a cost - his quarter-final match falls on his daughter's birthday. "Yeah, she was not very happy about it, me being absent from the birthday party. Don't remind me of that, please," said Djokovic, who became the oldest man to reach all four Grand Slam quarter-finals in a single season. The victory also moved Djokovic into his 64th Grand Slam q...