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Novak Djokovic has clarified that he has used the off-season to ‘rebuild’ his body and that his preparation for the Australian Open has been going ‘very well’ despite a physical ‘setback.’

The world No 4 is seeking to make more history in Melbourne by becoming the first person – male or female – to win 25 Grand Slam singles titles.

Djokovic was meant to have competed at the ATP 250 in Adelaide prior to the Australian Open action, but was forced to withdraw due to not being ‘quite physically ready’ for the event.

“To all my fans in Adelaide. Unfortunately I’m not quite physically ready to compete in the Adelaide International next week,” he stated on Instagram, announcing the decision.

“It’s personally very disappointing to me as I have such great memories of winning the title there [three] years ago. I was really excited about returning as it truly felt like playing at home.

“My focus is now on my preparation for the Australian Open and I look forward to arriving in Melbourne soon and seeing all the tennis fans in Australia.”

Physical issues have become more frequent over the last 18 months for the Serb, something which he was renowned for avoiding.

He underwent knee surgery in the summer of 2024, before retiring from his semi-final against Alexander Zverev at the latest edition of Australian Open.

At Wimbledon, the former world No 1 suffered a nasty slip during his last-eight match against Flavio Cobolli, impeding his ability to perform at his best in the subsequent round.

On that occasion, Djokovic argued that the discomfort was also impacted by overall ‘wear and tear’, rather than a freak accident.

However, he was able to reassure fans that the issue preventing him from playing Adelaide was just a ‘little setback’, but that his recovery has been ‘going very well.’

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“I ended up the season in the first week of November, so it’s been a while since I played any competition, any official tournament,” Djokovic later commented during the press conference.

“You know, I took some time off, and obviously took more time to rebuild my body, because I understand that in the last couple of years, that’s what changed the most for me is it takes more time to rebuild, and it also takes more time to reset or recover.

“So, unfortunately, I had a little setback that prevented me to compete at Adelaide tournament. That’s why I didn’t go there physically, but it’s been going on very well so far here.

“Obviously every day there is something here and there for me and I guess for each one of us, but generally I feel good and look forward to competing.”

Djokovic will get his Australian Open campaign underway against Spaniard Pedro Martinez, with the pair having never met on the professional tour.

The Serb’s seeding allowed him to avoid facing Jannik Sinner prior to the semi-final and Carlos Alcaraz before the showpiece match.

Indeed, whilst he hasn’t lifted a Grand Slam since the 2023 US Open, Djokovic is not yet willing to give retirement much thought and is satisfied by continuing to play nonetheless.

“I have been asked a lot about obviously when is the, you know, end date going to come for me, but, you know, I don’t want to talk or think about it yet, because I’m here, I’m competing,” he added.

“When that arrives and kind of becomes ripe in my head, I’ll share it with you, and then we can all discuss on the farewell tour.

“But right now I’m still No. 4 in the world, still competing at the highest level, and I feel like there is no need to draw the attention to that discussion.”

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Emma Raducanu has handed down a harsh criticism of the Australian Open’s ‘very difficult’ scheduling, stating that it ‘doesn’t really make much sense.’

The Brit is due to compete in her fifth edition of the season’s first Grand Slam, producing her best result with a third-round appearance in 2025 (losing to Iga Swiatek).

Prior to that, she had made three consecutive second rounds in Melbourne.

Raducanu is due to get her campaign underway against Thai Mananchaya Sawangkaew, who is ranked outside of the world’s top 200.

However, much of her press conference was taken up by her voicing dissatisfaction towards the scheduling of the encounter.

She is scheduled to play Sawangkaew in the last match of the Margaret Court Arena, after the conclusion of Alexander Bublik’s match against American Jenson Brooksby – which begins at 7pm local time.

“It’s very difficult,” Raducanu said.

“You would love to have more time in the environment, more time practising, but I guess I was pretty much handed the schedule to try and turn it around and make the most out of what is in front of me.

“I think it’s easy to get down and complain about it, but it’s not going to help. So I’m just trying to focus and turn it around for tomorrow.

“It’s very difficult to be scheduling women’s matches after a potential five-set match. To me, it doesn’t really make much sense.

“Today I’m going to practice and see what it’s like. I don’t think I have been in that situation. Only once before maybe when I played the semi-finals of the US Open.

“I played the second night match but, other than that, I haven’t played that late. So, for me, it’s a new experience, something that I need to learn to do.”

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Whilst Raducanu had a healthier 2025 than in years prior, her off-season preparation was reportedly impacted by a lingering foot issue.

She started her 2026 season with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 loss to Greek Maria Sakarri, looking short of practice and overall match fitness.

The Brit then took part in an event in Hobart, beating Camila Osorio, but falling to wildcard Taylah Preston in the quarter-finals 6-2, 6-4.

However, Raducanu was able to give a positive update about the foot discomfort and stated that it is ‘improving day by day.’

“It’s definitely a lot better,” the 2021 US Open champion revealed.

“I’ve been having to manage it for the last few months but I’m really happy with the progress that I’ve made this year.

“I came out to Australia not knowing how it would go and now I’m in a much better place and just improving day by day.

“I could easily get frustrated about not having the pre-season I wanted. I think it would only frustrate me.

“After last year being my first real year on tour, I really learned that the season is so long. I just want to try and work my way into this year.

“Obviously I want this week to go well but I know that I’m working on the right things and it will slot into place at some point.

“I started training very, very late on tennis-wise.

“So, because of that, I feel like I need to kind of take the pressure off myself and not put too much pressure on and expect to be playing amazing tennis.”

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Novak Djokovic has laid down a gauntlet ahead of the Australian Open, declaring that he can ‘beat anybody’ in the draw when at his best, including Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

The Serb has had a complicated last 24 months, reaching one Grand Slam final and five such semi-finals, but looking increasingly physically weakened towards the back end of tournaments.

2025 saw Djokovic defy age by winning titles in both Geneva and Athens, increasing his overall singles title haul to 101.

His last three Grand Slam semi-final defeats came to one of Sinner (French Open and Wimbledon) and Alcaraz (US Open), unable to clinch a set in any clash.

Since the former world No 1’s victory at the US Open in 2023, the pair have produced a dominance not too dissimilar from that during Big Three era – sharing all of the last eight Grand Slams.

Despite the hurdles, Djokovic still believes that he can give himself opportunities to compete with the world’s best, including over the next two weeks in Melbourne.

“I’m missing a little bit of juice in my legs, to be honest, to be able to compete with these guys at the later stages of a Grand Slam,” he admitted during his pre-tournament press conference.

“I lost three out of four slams against either Sinner or Alcaraz. We know how good they are, and they absolutely deserve to be where they are.

“They are the dominant forces of the men’s tennis at the moment. I’m still trying to be in the mix.

“Obviously I’m grateful to have the better ranking so that I could have eventually better draws in, you know, the first several rounds. That doesn’t affect the way I approach [a] Slam.

“You know, I know that my priority is really taking care of my body and trying to of course treat every match like it’s finals, but at the same time, build momentum and also not spend unnecessary energy, you know, and hopefully I can go far again and get a chance to play them.”

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Of course, a hypothetical victory at the Australian Open wouldn’t just break Djokovic’s drought, it would also give him the record for the most Grand Slam singles titles by any player – male or female.

The Serb is currently tied with Margaret Court on 24 titles.

Djokovic would also break the record for the oldest players to win a singles Grand Slam, with Ken Rosewall currently holding that record at 37 years and two months.

However, he has also noted that he does not want to induce any unnecessary pressure at the four biggest tournaments of the season.

“Yeah, there has been a lot of talk about the 25th, but, you know, I try to focus myself on what I have achieved, not what I’m possibly achieving,” Djokovic commented.

“I mean, I hope it comes to that, but 24 is also not a bad number. I have to appreciate that and remind myself of the amazing career I had.

“And also, you know, release some of that unnecessary pressure.

“I mean, obviously there is always pressure and expectations, but, you know, I don’t think it’s, you know, needed for me to really go far in terms of, you know, make-it-or-break-it type of thing, you know, it’s now-or-never type of mentality. I don’t feel it’s necessary.

“Neither does that allow me to excel and perform my best.

“I’m just, as I said, grateful to have another shot, particularly here, a place where I won 10 Grand Slam titles and been consistently playing well and reaching the final stages. Last couple of years also semi-finals, ’24 semi-finals, ’25. Had a great win against Carlos [Alcaraz] in quarters last year.

“Look, I know that when I’m healthy, when I’m able to put all the pieces of the puzzle together on a given day, I feel like I can beat anybody. If I don’t have that self-belief and confidence in myself, I wouldn’t be here definitely sitting here and talking to you guys or competing.

“I still have the drive, and of course I understand that, you know, [Jannik] Sinner and Alcaraz are playing on a different level right now from everybody else. That’s a fact, but that doesn’t mean that nobody else has a chance. So I like my chances always, in any tournament, particularly here.”

The 24-time Grand Slam champion has landed in Sinner’s half of the draw, meaning he cannot meet the Italian before the semi-finals, and the Spaniard before a hypothetical final.

He will get his campaign underway against Spaniard Pedro Martinez.

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Aryna Sabalenka has started 2026 as she means to go on as the world No 1 retained her Brisbane Open title against Marta Kostyuk.

She was happy, stable and played well all week, winning the tournament without dropping a set. The lack of a post-match handshake from the Ukrainian couldn’t even taint life. When everything is going well, it’s easier to be chill.

Melbourne was also the Belarusian’s happy place until Madison Keys came along 12 months ago and stopped the two-time champion’s 20-match winning streak at the venue.

It was the first of two unedifying outbursts during the 2025 WTA Tour season with the other taking place at Roland Garros a few months later.

A smashed racket courtside on Rod Laver and a tetchy comment about her losing the Paris final – rather than Coco Gauff winning it – revealed an inability to cope with extreme disappointment. She needs to recalibrate her attitude to triumph and disaster.

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Her US Open loss to Gauff in 2023 was bravely negotiated through tears and with a few well-placed jokes in front of a vociferous Arthur Ashe crowd. It’s a shame that her subsequent two reverses in Slam finals weren’t similar models of grace in defeat.

Of course, nobody’s perfect.

Sabalenka’s emotional highs and lows are essentially the bridge for fans and ordinary folk to connect. She’s human and shows it.

However, when she demonstrates unfiltered rage, it adversely affects her chances of success at the business end of the big ones.

“I think the main lesson that I learned is that no matter what, it doesn’t matter how I feel, how frustrated I am inside, I still have to try to stay calm and try to think clear, just try to focus on the plan that I have for the match. No matter what, stay in control,” the 27-year-old said at the end of last year.

She has been working through the positive channelling of her thought process with coaches Anton Dubrov and Jason Stacy.

Sabalenka has been trying to absorb the Novak Djokovic mindset, which would have been perfect at Flushing Meadows in 2023. Imagine they were cheering Aryna rather than Coco [as Djokovic imagined ‘Novak’ when he played [Roger] Federer at Wimbledon in 2019).

That might have been a difficult one to pull off for someone who wears their heart on their sleeve. However, the idea was to try to look at things as if observing from off the court rather than on it.

Compared to the constant love-in with the Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz roadshow, Gauff and Sabalenka have both had their detractors in recent weeks.

The American received significant pushback on her claim that the country’s supporters are “the worst” for travelling abroad to support their tennis stars.

Sabalenka lost a Battle of the Sexes match against Nick Kyrgios, which never reached six feet under as a spectacle. It was like having two mates pretending to care about the outcome of a friendly.

Last year’s Melbourne runner-up has shown considerable vulnerability in recent times when the big prizes are up for grabs.

She also lost her second WTA Tour final to an inspired Elena Rybakina in November. If Amanda Anisimova hadn’t become so distracted with the lights of New York, the best player in the world could have been looking at three straight Slam final losses.

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Anisimova clearly had the game to unsettle her opponent, but her elite mentality at the business end of majors is still on shaky ground.

Sabalenka is a big favourite in Australia. Iga Swiatek’s form and aura are on the ropes, and Gauff is in the hardest section of the draw.

The world No 1 has reached 11 out of the last dozen Slam semis and ended up winning four of them. It could and should be better. To truly grab the great player tag, the Belarusian has to push through the difficult moments more, something that she did well in the US Open.

At the end of 2024, the Tigress wanted to dominate the tour “like Serena did”, stating in an interview with Arab News: “I always wanted to dominate the tour like Serena [Williams] did, like Iga was able to do for so long.

“It’s really inspiring … but I’m trying to focus on myself, on improving myself, to make sure that I have all of the tools to dominate the tour as they did.”

She’s not far off. The next step must be piling up the majors now.

The post Will Aryna Sabalenka throw her toys out of the pram at Australian Open? appeared first on Tennis365.

After a disappointing end to 2025 and start to 2026, all eyes will be on how Emma Raducanu will perform at the upcoming Australian Open.

The draw gods have not been too kind to Raducanu in Melbourne, with the Brit projected to face top seed and title favourite Aryna Sabalenka as early as the third round.

However, by being the 28th seed, the Brit earned herself some level of protection in the opening stages of the event, and will kickstart her campaign against Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew. Here, we take you through all you need to know about Raducanu and Sawangkaew’s opening-round match inside Melbourne Park.

Who is Mananchaya Sawangkaew?

Currently ranked 195th in the world, Sawangkaew has used her protected ranking to enter the main draw of the Australian Open — in what will be her first-ever Grand Slam main draw appearance.

Born in Thailand in July 2002, Sawangkaew — who started playing tennis aged four — reached her career-high ranking of world No 100 in June 2025, after reaching the second round of qualifying at the French Open.

Earlier in 2025, she had also reached the biggest final of her career, with the Thai finishing runner-up to Jill Teichmann at the WTA 125 Mumbai Open last February.

After Roland Garros last summer, Sawangkaew was sidelined with injury and did not return to action until late November, when she lost in the opening round of an ITF event in Yokohama.

However, the 23-year-old then found some form representing Thailand at the SEA Games on home soil, picking up a silver medal after losing the women’s singles final to Alex Eala.

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She then followed that up with a run to the W75 ITF title in Nonthaburi last week, beating Lisa Pigato in the final to claim the fourth ITF singles title of her career.

Prior to this year’s Australian Open, Sawangkaew’s best Grand Slam result had been reaching the third round of qualifying at the 2024 US Open.

Sawangkaew is joined by compatriot Lanlana Tararudee in the main draw, making it the first Grand Slam since the 2011 US Open that two Thai players have been in women’s singles action at a major.

When will Raducanu and Sawangkaew take to court?

The opening round of action at the Australian Open is spread across three days, yet we already know when Raducanu and Sawangkaew will be in action in Melbourne.

The clash between the two women will be the second night session match inside the Margaret Court Arena on Sunday, January 18, following the men’s singles match between 10th seed Alexander Bublik and Jenson Brooksby.

This means that Raducanu and Sawangkaew can likely be expected to step onto the court around 21:00 Melbourne time, which would be 10:00 UK time, and 05:00 US East Coast time.

The winner of this match will face either Suzan Lamens or Anastasia Potapova in the second round, a match that will take place on Wednesday.

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A Supercomputer has identified the favourites to win the 2026 Australian Open singles titles, and Emma Raducanu has been given just a 0.1% chance of securing her second major.

Madison Keys and Jannik Sinner are the reigning Australian Open champions, with the year’s first Grand Slam set to begin on Sunday.

There were four different major champions in women’s tennis last season, with Coco Gauff (French Open), Iga Swiatek (Wimbledon) and Aryna Sabalenka (US Open) joining Keys.

It was a different story in the men’s game, with the dominant pair of Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz each winning two of the four Grand Slams — as they did in 2024.

What is the Australian Open Supercomputer – and how does it work?

The Australian Open Supercomputer, conducted by JeffBet, is a probability model, not determined by human predictions or bias.

It estimates the results of each round based on every player’s current strength such as experience and recent form as well as betting market odds.

The machine then simulates the remaining matches in a season 10,000 times and constructs an average league table from the 10,000 simulations, to rule out anomalous results.

What has the Supercomputer predicted for the Australian Open women’s draw?

WTA world No 1 Sabalenka won the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024 before losing the 2025 final to Keys, while No 2 Iga Swiatek is chasing a maiden title — which would see her complete the career Grand Slam.

The Supercomputer sees Sabalenka as the favourite to lift the trophy once again, with the Belarusian being given a 23.7% chance of triumph.

Swiatek is not far behind with a 19.8% chance, while world No 3 and two-time major winner Coco Gauff is the third favourite with a 16.6% likelihood of winning her first Australian Open title.

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Amanda Anisimova (8%), Elena Rybakina (6.9%) and Jessica Pegula (6.6%) are rated as the fourth, fifth and sixth favourites.

World No 9 Madison Keys has been given just a 1.7% chance of defending her crown.

Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion, is seeded 28th, but she is rated as the 36th favourite with just a 0.1% likelihood of winning.

The Brit’s projected third round meeting with Sabalenka is a big factor as she has only a 9.9% chance of reaching the fourth round.

What has the Supercomputer predicted for the Australian Open men’s draw?

ATP world No 2 Sinner has secured the last two Australian Open men’s singles crowns, while top-ranked Alcaraz is aiming to win his first title at Melbourne Park, which — like Swiatek — is the only major he is missing.

Alcaraz is yet to progress beyond the quarter-finals at the Australian Open, but according to the Supercomputer, he has a 47% chance to win the title this year, making him the strong favourite.

The likelihood of Sinner claiming his third Australian Open crown has been calculated as 30.7%.

Novak Djokovic, a 10-time Australian Open winner and 24-time Grand Slam champion, is a distant third favourite with an 8.1% chance of victory.

Alexander Zverev (6%), Alex de Minaur (3.1%), Lorenzo Musetti (3%) and Felix Auger-Aliassime (3%) are the only other men given more than a 0.9% chance of winning.

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Roger Federer has used his first appearance at the Australian Open in six years to respond to coaching rumours, stating ‘never say never’, but that he is ‘definitely out’ for the foreseeable future.

Despite being retired, the Swiss legend has been the talk of the tennis world over the last 48 hours after making various appearances around the Australian Open grounds, including a public tiebreak against Casper Ruud.

Federer hadn’t made the journey down under since 2020, two years prior to his eventual retirement.

In addition to his on-court action, Federer has also been asked about the current state of the men’s tennis field, including world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz.

The Spaniard is one of the favourites for the title in Australia, but will contest his first tournament without long-time coach Juan Carlos Ferrero.

The split was announced just ahead of the new season, something which happened relatively spontaneously over multiple contractual disagreements.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion was even asked whether he would be interested in filling the vacancy.

“I’m out, I’m definitely out. Maybe I could give him some advice on the periphery but everybody knows I’m too busy with my children and my life at the minute,” responded Federer whilst speaking to TNT Sports.

“I think he can get [the career Grand Slam] with a coach or without a coach, he is that good obviously.

“A good coach definitely will be helping. I don’t know if he has already done press here and talked about his Ferrero situation a little bit, which is obviously going to be a little bit uncomfortable but it’s something you just have to do as a pro.

“But it is definitely going to be very important to him to find the right person in his corner and to be able to get the career Grand Slam at such a young age is incredible to be honest.

“So let’s see if he can do it.

“[Jannik] Sinner is obviously the other big, big favourite and I believe Novak [Djokovic] will have a good shot as well.”

As Federer mentioned, Alcaraz would become the youngest male singles player to have won all four Grand Slams – if he were to win the 2026 or 2027 Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal currently holds the record at 24 years, three months, and ten days after being victorious at the 2010 US Open.

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However, whilst the Swiss ruled himself out of coaching Alcaraz anytime soon, he did leave the door open for a similar coaching role many years into the future.

“Never say never. [Stefan] Edberg said the same. I’m very busy, I’ve got four children. No chance for the moment,” said Federer at a special press conference in Melbourne.

The comments also come after the six-time Melbourne champion heaped more praise on the 22-year-old Spaniard, going so far as to make comparisons between himself and Alcaraz.

“At Wimbledon, when Grigor was playing against Jannik and I was sitting there, that made it easy to think how it could’ve been because Grigor plays very similar to how I played,” analysed Federer.

“I think it was one of the first times I thought how would it have been to play Jannik. I didn’t feel that way watching Jannik and Novak (in Shanghai), I was just watching great tennis because they both played very different to how I play.

“Carlos, when I see him, I feel like there’s more similarities in terms of what we would do.

“In terms of when we would hit a drop shot, when we would come to the net, how offensive, how passive do we decide to play, because I think we like to play on our terms.

“So I put myself more into Carlos’s mindset and skin.”

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Iga Swiatek will join the ranks of the all-time greats in tennis if she wins the Australian Open and completes a her collection of Grand Slam titles, but former top 10 star Barbara Schett believes the the pressure she puts on herself could be her greatest challenge.

Swiatek started 2026 with defeats against Coco Gauff and Belinda Bencic and while she battled back well to help Poland win the United Cup, there are some doubts hovering over the reigning Wimbledon champion as she prepares to challenge for the one major title missing on her list of achievements.

The stress of playing at the highest level has often taken its toll on Swiatek and she has pleaded with the media, especially in her Polish homeland, to show more control in their coverage of her career.

Yet former world No 7 Schett believes Swiatek can control some of the negativity that circles her by avoiding looking at media coverage and staying away from social media.

She just needs to find a bit of a balance. She is so worried all the time and she seems so stressed out and that is the hardest part for her,” Schett told Tennis365 as she prepares to join the TNT Sports team at the Australian Open.

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“She need to play feeling a little more relaxed and having fun, while still being there. She hasn’t quite found the mixture yet.

“You can’t always win. Tennis is the hardest sport to be consistent week-in, week-out. To win every week is impossible and it would be a shame if people only realise how great Iga Swiatek is when she is not around any more.

“She has won six Grand Slam titles she is only young, so give her a break. You can’t win every week and I’m sure it gets to her when people are critical.

“I’m sure she doesn’t read too many articles any more and stays away from social media because it can be quite negative.”

“Everybody is beatable at the moment and after speaking to a member of the Polish media, I know they are really worried about her because she lost against Gauff and Bencic and she was a bit teary at one stage during the United Cup.

“The Polish media put a lot of pressure her, but she also puts pressure on herself. She won Wimbledon last year, so it’s that much of a horrible year.

“She has never played her best tennis at the Australian Open because it is a little bit too fast for her, but don’t write her off. Iga is one of the fe players who has beaten everyone and she can beat Sabalenka on a good day.

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“So she just needs to find a bit of a balance. She is so worried all the time and she seems so stressed out and that is the hardest part for her.

“She need to play feeling a little more relaxed and having fun, while still being there. She hasn’t quite found the mixture yet.

“You can’t always win. Tennis is the hardest sport to be consistent week-in, week-out. To win every week is impossible and it would be a shame if people only realise how great Iga Swiatek is when she is not around any more.

“She has won six Grand Slam titles she is only young, so give her a break. You can’t win every week and I’m sure it gets to her when people are critical.

“I’m sure she doesn’t read too many articles any more and stays away from social media because it can be quite negative.”

Swiatek has been handed a tough Australian Open draw, with a last-16 clash against Naomi Osaka a possibility, followed by a possible quarter-final meeting with Elena Rybakina.

Watch every match of the Australian Open live on TNT Sports and discovery+ from 18 Jan

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Former world No 2 Alex Corretja believes the path to a 25th Grand Slam title could open up for Novak Djokovic in 2026, as he insists he may not need to get past Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner to achieve that goal.

Djokovic is currently tied with Margaret Court on 24 Grand Slam wins, with the Serbian needing one more to etch himself into the history books with the most major titles in tennis history.

Yet the rise of Alcaraz and Sinner has halted his ambitions over the last two years, with the two young guns sharing the last eight Grand Slam titles between them.

Djokovic confirmed he was still the third best player in the men’s game as he reached all the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams, but he admits Alcaraz and Sinner are hurdles he is struggling to get over in a year when he will toast his 39th birthday.

Corretja, who will be part of the TNT Sports team at the Australian Open, has give us his verdict on Djokovic’s hopes in 2026 and he admits the question marks over what comes next for the Serbian will soon be answered.

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“It’s very unpredictable and very difficult to know where his soul and his heart are in the tennis world at this moment,” Corretja told Tennis365, as he spoke about Djokovic.

“That’s the only question I have. Does he have the will and the desire to keep on improving? He is the only one who knows why he is continuing.

“Unless he says it openly, it’s very difficult to know what the reason [Djokovic is continuing] besides loving the sport.

“If he has the desire, he feels he is ready and he is healthy, he could still have one good year. I would be surprised if he could go more than that, honestly.”

Corretja also downplayed the theory that Djokovic will need to beat both Alcaraz and Sinner to win another Grand Slam title, as he insisted such presumptions cannot be guaranteed.

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“You can’t count on that. You never know what is going to happen in tennis and in life in general,” he added.

“Let’s say one of them loses in the quarter-finals and he beats one of them in the semis. Then you are in the final with another player and if it is (Alexander) Zverev, that is also a tough task.

“It is more about how he is feeling when he gets into the main matches of the quarter-finals and the semis like last year at Wimbledon when, in my opinion, he was toast before he played Sinner.

“Or is it like the US Open when it looked like he was okay, but they he couldn’t manage to do well against Carlitos.

“Not playing the week before is difficult because all the matches come at you and you don’t know how the body will react. Physically and mentally, sometimes it is exhausting, so we will see.

“Hopefully he can be there. It would be great to have Novak there again playing for even more history. That would be awesome for tennis.”

Djokovic allayed fears over a possible injury concern with a win against Frances Tiafoe in a warm-up match on Thursday, with the draw for the Australian Open has paving the way for his possible match-up against Sinner in the semi-finals.

Watch every match of the Australian Open live on TNT Sports and discovery+ from 18 Jan

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A leading athlete welfare and injury prevention expert has told Tennis365 why he expects the 2026 Australian Open to be “very, very challenging” for Emma Raducanu.

Stephen Smith, the founder and CEO of Kitman Labs — the world’s leading sports science and performance intelligence company — has said Raducanu is in a “really unenviable position” due to her injury-affected preparations for the campaign.

Raducanu cut short her 2025 season in mid-October having struggled with physical issues at events in Wuhan and Ningbo, and she pulled out of exhibition matches in the United States in December due to “light bone bruising” in her right foot.

At the 2026 United Cup, Raducanu withdrew ahead of what was set to be her first match of the year against Naomi Osaka.

The 23-year-old Brit fell in three sets to Maria Sakkari on her return to the match court on 5 January, after which she revealed the extent to which the foot problem had restricted her ability to practise.

“I started hitting two weeks ago, so it’s been a good two and a bit months where I didn’t play,” the world No 29 said.

What did Stephen Smith say about Emma Raducanu?

In an exclusive interview, Tennis365 asked Smith about the impact of players, like Raducanu, competing at the start of a new season after having their pre-season disrupted by injury.

“I think you ask too much, you put too much stress and too much toll on your body when you don’t have that foundational base that you need,” Smith explained.

“You don’t have the conditioning base, you don’t have the neurological strength base. And potentially don’t have the cardiovascular base either.

“I think that’s when you see small injuries like this pop up, and it can have a pretty big impact, a meaningful impact on the entire season for someone.

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“Emma Raducanu, the bone bruising issue that she’s been dealing with, the risk with something like that, it would seem that potentially her pre-season has been hampered by that.

“And if she has to overload that, or has to put too much stress and strain on a bone bruise like that, the risk for that is like a stress fracture. And then we’re talking like eight to 12 weeks of time lost because of something like that.

“So, I think that’s a real precarious position that she’s in, because she has to get the balance right of, how much is too much that she turns this bone bruising into a stress fracture? And how much is enough to be able to get a base to be able to play your season?

“And that’s a really, really unenviable position that she’s in. But going to a tournament like the Australian Open when you’ve had your entire pre-season hampered by something like that, I think will be very, very challenging.”

Who will Emma Raducanu play at the Australian Open?

Raducanu will face 195th-ranked Thai player Mananchaya Sawangkaew in her opening match at the Australian Open.

After her United Cup campaign, Raducanu competed at the Hobart International this week, where she defeated Camila Osorio in the first round before receiving a second round walkover from Magdalena Frech.

In the quarter-finals at the WTA 250 tournament, Raducanu — who was the top seed — suffered a surprise 2-6, 4-6 loss to world No 204 Taylah Preston.

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