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Jack Draper has hailed Novak Djokovic as the greatest tennis player of all time as he shared his thoughts on the Serbian icon reaching the 2026 Australian Open final.

Djokovic reached his 11th Australian Open final and 38th Grand Slam championship match — both record-extending numbers — at this year’s edition of the Melbourne major.

At the age of 38 years and 255 days, Djokovic became the oldest Australian Open finalist in history and the oldest Grand Slam finalist since a 39-year-old Ken Rosewall reached the 1974 US Open title match.

The Serbian delivered a remarkable display to defeat world No 2 Jannik Sinner in a thrilling five-set semi-final in Melbourne. He lost in four sets to Carlos Alcaraz in the final.

Djokovic, who is ranked third in the world, has won a record 24 Grand Slam titles and holds the record for the most weeks spent as world No 1 (428).

In an interview with The National, Draper described Djokovic as an example of “true greatness” and a “proper inspiration.”

“Nothing surprises me with Novak. I think, for me, he’s the greatest tennis player of all time,” said the former world No 4. “He is an example to everyone just of longevity and true greatness.

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“I think whenever I watch him play, I’m always inspired by the fact that in Australia, what… he won it, like 10 times? And he’s out there in his 11th final there.

“And for me and for many other players, he’s a proper inspiration and someone that we all look up to and aspire to be like.”

Draper made his long-awaited comeback from a bone stress injury in his left arm in Great Britain’s Davis Cup win over Norway earlier this month, beating Viktor Durasovic 6-2, 6-2 in his only match.

The British star had not played since he was forced to withdraw ahead of his second round match at the US Open in August.

The 24-year-old, who is ranked 15th, is making his ATP Tour comeback at the Dubai Championships this week.

Asked if he is now pain-free, Draper said: “It’s difficult to say at the moment. I’m still at the very end of my process of that. But do I think that I’m going to be good to play full out and play week after week? Absolutely.”

Draper added: “I think from a recovery point of view, my habits off the court maybe changed a little bit. Like I’m trying to sleep more and recover better. I understand the value of my body a hell of a lot more.

“And I think just learning to maybe slow down a little bit as well and to know that you don’t have to always be working ridiculously hard all the time. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

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Former ATP Tour star Julien Benneteau believes Jannik Sinner will be back to top form across the American hard-court swing, despite claiming that Carlos Alcaraz had “gotten into” the Italian’s head.

World No 2 Sinner has been one of the most dominant players of the past two seasons, with him and world No 1 Alcaraz combining to win the last nine Grand Slam men’s singles titles between them.

Sinner was arguably the form player of the closing months of 2025, winning the Vienna Open, Paris Masters, and ATP Finals — defeating Alcaraz in the final — to end his year on a 15-match unbeaten streak.

However, the Italian has not had a perfect start to 2026.

Sinner was beaten by Novak Djokovic in five sets in the semi-final of the Australian Open, ending his five-match win streak against the Serbian and his 19-match win streak in Melbourne.

That was then followed by a surprise exit at the Qatar Open in his return to action last week, with the world No 2 beaten 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-3 by Jakub Mensik at the quarter-final stage in Doha.

In contrast, Alcaraz lifted the title at both of those tournaments, with the Spaniard on an unbeaten 12-0 start to his 2026 campaign.

After defeat in Doha, Sinner will now head to the ‘Sunshine Double’ in Indian Wells and Miami, searching for his first title of 2026.

Sinner reached back-to-back semi-finals in Indian Wells in 2023 and 2024, while he was the Miami Open champion in 2024 — having previously reached the final in 2021 and 2023.

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However, he was banned from competing at both tournaments in 2025 due to his three-month suspension for a doping violation.

Speaking on RMC Sports, former world No 25 Benneteau backed Sinner for a strong return to the Masters 1000 events, and claimed that the Italian would beat Alcaraz at some stage this year.

However, the Frenchman also claimed that Sinner was still chasing his Spanish rival.

He said (translated from French): “Alcaraz isn’t going to win all his matches; he’s going to lose some.

“I think Sinner will manage to beat Alcaraz during the season. But yes, as of February 22nd, since January 1st, he’s [Alcaraz] been impressive. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this strong.

“Then again, three weeks before the start of the season, it was Sinner who beat him in the Masters final. There isn’t a world of difference between the two.

“Sinner might be a tiny bit off his game, and he took a hit by losing to Djokovic in the Australian Open semi-finals.

“But on the American tour with the Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with. He’s not going to lose in the round of 16 or the quarter-finals every time.

“I think Alcaraz has gotten into his head because Sinner is trying to evolve his game compared to Alcaraz, whereas Carlos has a much more complete game than Sinner.”

Action in Indian Wells — the first of the two ‘Sunshine Double’ tournaments — gets underway next week, with Sinner set to be the second seed at the tournament.

Currently, all of the ATP Tour top 10 are set to be in action, with Sinner set to be joined by world No 1 Alcaraz and world No 4 Djokovic in the men’s singles draw.

With the Italian not defending any points after last year’s suspension, this event provides a significant opportunity for him to start closing the gap towards Alcaraz at the top of the ATP Rankings.

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Organisers of the Mexican Open have insisted that reports that the tournament had been cancelled due to “security issues in Jalisco are false”.

The main draw of the ATP 500 event – with Alexander Zverev, Alex de Minaur, Casper Ruud, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Flavio Cobolli, Valentin Vacherot, Cameron Norrie and Frances Tiafoe the top eight seeds – is set to run from February 23-28 at Arena GNP Seguros with first-round matches starting on Monday local time.

However, the tournament was thrown into doubt over the weekend following the death of drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes – who was known as “El Mencho” and was the head of the notorious Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

According to the BBC, “El Mencho” was one of the most wanted men in the North American country and he had a $15m bounty on his head.

But he was killed during a military operation on Sunday and “Mexican authorities and the US reported that US intelligence was involved in bringing down the kingpin”.

His death has led to violence across Mexico with shops, schools and businesses closing in several cities, including Acapulco, while two top-flight football matches were rescheduled.

Authorities have also asked residents in certain cities not to leave their homes.

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It resulted in some media reporting that the Mexican Open will be cancelled but organisers issued a statement late on Sunday to reject those claims, saying: “The Telcel Mexican Open presented by HSBC reports that the statement circulating in some media outlets and social networks about the alleged cancellation of the event due to security issues in Jalisco is false.

“The tournament has not issued any cancellation notice. The event continues as scheduled and the tournament is operating normally.

“We remain in constant coordination and communication with federal, state and municipal authorities, under established security protocols.”

Qualification for the main draw continued as scheduled on Sunday and De Minaur, Norrie and Grigor Dimitrov are all set to be in action on Monday.

The ATP is yet to release any statement about whether or not the Acapulco hard-court tournament is in any danger of being cancelled or postponed.

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Carlos Alcaraz says ‘there is always room for improvement’, despite his unbeaten run in 2026, after having lifted the title at the Qatar Open, sending a warning to his rivals.

The Spaniard put on a 6-2, 6-1 dominant display in the quickest match of his professional career (50 minutes) against Frenchman Arthur Fils to lift the title in Doha.

Overall, the world No 1 extended his winning streak to 12 matches, as well as reaching 30 consecutive match wins on outdoor hard courts.

The victory also grows his rankings lead over Jannik Sinner to 3150 points and his overall singles title haul to 26.

However, after the victory, Alcaraz made clear that success is defined by more than trophy lifts, and, instead, is better founded upon his overall level and on-court feelings.

“For me, success is much more than lifting trophies,” he analysed during his post-match press conference.

“To me, success is how you see yourself and how you feel. I am proud, and I already feel successful because I learn in every match.

“On and off the court, I am learning from everything, from every experience in my life. I am a completely different person, even in playing, than I was in 2022 when I first became No 1 and won my first Grand Slam.

“Seeing myself grow as a person and as a player, seeing myself mature and enjoying where I am, that’s true success for me.

“That’s why I’m very proud of myself and why I enjoy every step I take as a tennis player. That’s how I define success, so far, in my career.”

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Over the last 24 months, Alcaraz has won five Grand Slams, four Masters 1000s, in addition to four ATP 500 titles.

At the most recent edition of the Australian Open, he became the youngest male singles player to win all four Grand Slams – at 22 years and 272 days.

However, in an ominous warning to the rest of the field, the Spaniard was steadfast in his belief that he could improve further and extend his undefeated start to the season.

“There is always room for improvement,” the world No 1 said.

“I still see myself with weaknesses. I try to get better in training, be better in matches.

“I set some goals for this tournament and executed them perfectly, happy and content with it. Improvement must continue, moving in the right direction.

“I want to carry on this 12-0 streak.”

Alcaraz’s next scheduled events are the Indian Wells Masters, where he is a two-time champion (2023 and 2024), and the Miami Open (champion in 2022).

From the ‘sunshine double’ until the French Open, the Spaniard will seek to defend his 4740 ranking points – significantly more than world No 2 Sinner’s 1950.

“I try not to think about anything other than myself when I step onto the court,” he responded when asked about the pressure of expectation.

“Right now, I feel that I love playing tennis, that I love competing. I enjoy every time I go out on the court. Sometimes we don’t stop to think about everything that happens to us.

“When you are out of competition, and I have been injured, you realise how beautiful all this is. You enjoy the beauty of this sport and how lucky you are to go out on the court.

“That’s why, right now, I always have a good time every time I go out to play, that’s why you see me happy, even if I lose a point or a match.

“Concerning objectives, obviously, my goals are to win the biggest tournaments on the planet, the Masters 1000, and the Grand Slams.

“Next up is Roland Garros, a tournament with incredible memories and experiences. I am eager to play there again. Before that, there are many special tournaments I want to prepare for well.”

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Carlos Alcaraz is one of only four players to break the 13,000-point mark in the ATP Rankings, but the big question is whether or not he can move ahead of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer on the list after the Sunshine Double.

The Spaniard started the 2026 season at No 1 in the rankings with 12,050 points and, after winning the Australian Open for the first time with a four-set win over Novak Djokovic, he left Melbourne Park with 13,650 points (he earned 2,000 points for the win, but dropped 400 from the 2025 campaign).

That tally helped him to move ahead of Andy Murray (12,685) and his great rival Jannik Sinner (12,030) and into fourth place on the list for most points achieved in the ATP Rankings.

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Alcaraz then dropped 500 points after opting not to defend his total at the Rotterdam Open to move to 13,150, but he will be back on 13,550 when the rankings are updated on Monday after winning the Qatar Open.

He still finds himself fourth on the list with Nadal and Federer enjoying a healthy points buffer in second and third place, respectively, while No 1 Djokovic appears to be untouchable, at least for the foreseeable future.

The Top Three

Nadal is currently third with 15,390 with the 22-time Grand Slam winner setting his points record in April 2009 when he was the holder of the French Open (2008), Wimbledon (2008) and Australian Open (2009) titles.

Federer, meanwhile, achieved his milestone three years earlier in November 2006 as he won the Australian Open, Wimbledon, US Open, and ATP Finals, and finished runner-up at Roland Garros.

The undisputed No 1 is Djokovic as he amassed a massive 16,950 points in June 2016, as he was the title holder at the Australian Open (2016), French Open (2016), Wimbledon (2015), US Open (2015), and ATP Finals (2015).

Alcaraz’s Upcoming Chances

There is good news and bad news for Alcaraz as there are a total of 2,000 points on offer at the next two events, the Indian Wells Open and the Miami Open.

With the ATP using a 52-week cumulative, rolling system, he will also drop points he won at the two ATP Masters 1000 tournaments in 2025.

Alcaraz, of course, was not at his peak at the Sunshine Double twelve months ago as he lost in the semi-final in Indian Wells against Jack Draper and was then stunned by David Goffin in the second round in Miami.

In total, he will drop 410 points (400 IW, 10 Miami), so that will effectively put him on 13,140, and if he wins both tournaments, he will pass the 15,000 mark.

But he will still be short of Nadal and Federer as he will be on 15,140 points.

The road to 15,500 points will get more difficult after that as he has 1,000 points to defend at the Monte Carlo Masters, 330 in Barcelona, 0 in Madrid, another 1,000 in Rome and 2,000 at Roland Garros.

The post ATP Rankings: Alcaraz now fourth for most points. Will he overtake Federer and Nadal? appeared first on Tennis365.

The draw has been revealed for the Mexican Open – an ATP 500 event – with the likes of Alexander Zverev, Alex De Minaur, Casper Ruud, and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina all competing to get their hands on the unique pear trophy.

The Mexican Open is staged in Acapulco at the Arena GNP Seguros on hard courts, having been played on red clay courts prior to 2014.

This year’s edition will be the tournament’s 33^rd and will take place from February 23 – 28.

The total prize pot sits at $2,469,450, whilst the last man standing will gain $461,835 towards their career prize money.

Previous champions include the likes of Rafael Nadal, Zverev, Dominic Thiem, Nick Kyrgios, and Grigor Dimitrov.

At last year’s edition, Czech Tomas Machac defeated Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6(6), 6-2 to collect his first singles title on the ATP Tour.

The 22-Grand Slam champion Nadal holds the record for most titles at the Mexican Open, winning in 2005, 2013, 2020, and 2022.

Withdrawals from the event include world No 5 Lorenzo Musetti and world No 9 Ben Shelton, both due to ongoing leg discomfort.

There are six top 20 players in action, and the seeds are: Zverev (1), De Minaur (2), Ruud (3), Davidovich Fokina (4), Cobolli (5), Valentin Vacherot (6), Cameron Norrie (7), Frances Tiafoe (8).

Top Half

World No 4 Alexander Zverev, who won the title in 2021, leads the top half of the draw after an impressive run to the Australian Open semi-finals.

The German will face the tricky Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the opening round, with either Miomir Kecmanovic or Tristan Schoolkate in the second round.

Elsewhere in his quarter lies seventh seed Cameron Norrie – who opens against the young Spaniard Rafael Jodar – and the 2014 champion Dimitrov, who faces Terence Atmane.

No 3 seed Ruud returns to the tournament against a qualifier and – if victorious – would then face either Adrian Mannarino or Eliot Spizzirri.

The Norwegian would then, likely, draw Cobolli in the quarter-finals, who he holds a 1-0 head-to-head lead over.

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Bottom Half

No 2 seed De Minaur has enjoyed a successful start to the season, reaching the last eight in Melbourne and lifting the title in Rotterdam.

The two-time Mexican Open champion will open against a qualifier, with Brandon Nakashima or another qualifier awaiting in the second round.

Shanghai Masters champion Valentin Vacherot enters the event as the sixth seed, and likely quarter-final opponent for De Minaur, if he can navigate his way past a qualifier and then either Gael Monfils or Damir Dzumhur.

In the other section of the half, fourth seed Davidovich Fokina will play Daniel Altmaier in the first round, while Mattia Bellucci or Sebastian Korda are his potential second-round opponents.

Eighth seed Tiafoe opens his campaign against Nuno Borges, before playing either Aleksandar Kovacevic or Adam Walton.

Projected Acapulco quarter-finals

Zverev (1) vs Norrie (7)

Ruud (3) vs Cobolli (5)

Tiafoe (8) vs Davidovich Fokina (4)

Vacherot (7) vs De Minaur (2)

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Carlos Alcaraz has added the Middle East to the tennis regions he has conquered and afterwards he used a unique animl to explain why he is able to win on so many different surfaces.

The world No 1 collected the 26th trophy of his career when he won the Qatar Open with an emphatic 52-minute victory over Arthur Fils in the final with the title his first in the Middle East.

Before this year’s tournament, Alcaraz had played in the region only once before and that was last year when he lost in the quarter-final against Jiri Lehecka in Doha.

But he has now ticked the region off his to-do list and, besides the Middle East, the seven-time Grand Slam winner has also won titles in Europe, North America, South America and Asia with all those continents offering different challenges in terms of weather conditions, surfaces and court speeds.

When asked why he is able to adapt, the Spaniard replied: “What that means is that I am a chameleon, and that is the key to being a great tennis player or athlete.

“You can’t get stuck playing well in one place, especially in the world of tennis because you’re travelling all the time, moving around, experiencing totally different places where the situations are also different.

“I’m happy to see that I can adapt to any situation and play well. If I miss a tournament because of that, I’ll go.”

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The Qatar Open was Alcaraz’s second title of the year as he is now unbeaten in 12 matches in 2026 following his title run at the Australian Open.

The 23-year-old will look to continue his winning streak at his next event, the Indian Wells Open, but before that he will take a break before heading to the United States for the Sunshine Double.

“Winning gives you a lot of confidence, but having those little breaks between tournaments is what really helps me,” he explained.

“Going back home for a week now, even if it’s just training or having some days off… I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do, but being home is what calms me down, what relaxes me, what makes me appreciate everything a little after each tournament, and especially each title.

“What’s coming up are special events for me, and we’ll see how they go. For now, let’s enjoy the Doha Falcon, which is beautiful.”

Although he is not sure what’s to come in terms of his off days, his plans for Indian Wells are taking shape and it will involve golf.

“In the locker room in Australia, we talked with several players about playing there,” he said. “I don’t know if I’ll train more for golf than tennis, but we’re definitely going to put in a lot of hours on the course.”

The post Carlos Alcaraz uses unique word to describe himself as he confirms upcoming schedule appeared first on Tennis365.

Rising star Alex Eala and her army of fans continue to be the talk of tennis with Jessica Pegula the latest to praise the Filipina player and her supporters.

Eala made her top-level breakthrough during the 2025 season with the Miami Open putting her name in the headlines as she beat Grand Slam winners Jeļena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and Iga Swiatek en route to the semi-final of the WTA 1000 event.

Her run was eventually ended by Pegula, but she surged into the top 100 of the WTA Rankings to become the first Filipina to achieve the feat while later in the year she made history again when she won her opener at the US Open, again becoming the first woman from the Philippines to win a major match.

Eala, who also reached her maiden top-level final last year as she finished runner-up at the Eastbourne Open in June, also peaked at No 50 before the end of the year.

Her rise has continued in 2026 as she made it to the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships before losing in straight sets against Coco Gauff.

The stands at the Aviation Club Tennis Centre were filled every time Eala made an appearance and the likes of Gauff and Amanda Anisimova were full of praise for the Filipina.

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And their fellow American Pegula, who beat Elina Svitolina in the WTA 1000 final on Saturday, was asked about the 20-year-old’s rise and her fans.

“Alex is amazing. The way she’s been able to pack stadiums and the way her country supports her is something special,” she said.

“She handles it so maturely, with such grace. She seems so appreciative of all the support she gets. Always seems to have a good head on her shoulders and a good attitude about it.

“It’s amazing. I played her when she kind of broke out last year in Miami. I’m from there. The whole crowd was against me. I was like, ‘What on earth is going on? Where did these people come from?’

“Week after week as she has done well and established herself as a really good player on tour, they all come out to support her. I think we saw that in Australia, when it was kind of overcrowded, they put her on too small of a court.

“We saw it here. You can hear it from the hotel. You can hear the crowd roaring at night. It’s incredible. I think it’s awesome for what she’s doing for the sport.

“She’s a perfect role model for it. I’m sure she wants to inspire girls, Filipino girls, to play tennis and go after their dream. It’s awesome for the sport. Yeah, it’s really, really cool. I think we just had a tournament there that she played.”

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Jessica Pegula has completed the WTA 1000 hard court set after she defeated Elina Svitolina to win the Dubai Tennis Championships.

The 31-year-old took a straight-sets victory 6-2, 6-4 to secure her fourth WTA 1000 title and continue her impressive start to the 2026 season.

Afterwards, she was happy to receive an early birthday present for Tuesday.

“I couldn’t ask for a better birthday present. I’m just super proud of myself. I had to play at a very high level, it was awesome,” Pegula said in her on-court interview.

“I feel like when you can get off to a quick start, that eases the nerves a little bit.

“Mentally, I think, especially the match yesterday, I was down a set and 3-1, and I fought back, which made me feel free today. I trusted the things we’ve been working on and it paid off.”

What is Jessica Pegula’s new ranking after Dubai Tennis Championships?

Despite receiving 880 points for her win, Pegula has not moved in the standings and remains in fifth, two spots off her career best of third.

The win takes her to 6,768 points, 35 points behind fourth-place Coco Gauff and 715 ahead of World No.6 Amanda Anisimova.

So far this year, Pegula has earned 1,855 ranking points and can next add to her tally with her next scheduled tournament, Indian Wells.

What is Jessica Pegula’s new prize money after Dubai Tennis Championships?

For winning the tournament, Pegula has received $665,000, an 11.4% increase from last year.

That puts her at $1,551,390 for the season and $23,433,268 for her career.

What is Elina Svitolina’s new ranking after Dubai Tennis Championships?

Despite the defeat, Svitolina has still earned a healthy amount of ranking points at 585.

She remains in ninth, 156 behind Mirra Andreeva who is in eighth. Victoria Mboko is 599 behind in 10th.

The 31-year-old has earned 1,735 so far this year.

What is Elina Svitolina’s new prize money after Dubai Tennis Championships?

For finishing runner-up, Svitolina was rewarded with $385,001 and has a YTD total of $1,232,676.

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