Carlos Alcaraz At Australia Open 2026: Top Seed Spaniard's Possible Path To Maiden Title

Carlos Alcaraz will open his Australian Open 2026 campaign with a first-round clash against home favourite Adam Walton. The top seed from Villena in Spain is chasing his first title Down Under. The official draw for the first Grand Slam tournament of the season was released on Thursday (January 15).

A two-time quarter-finalist, this will be Alcaraz's fifth Australian Open outing. He lost to German Alexander Zverev and Serbian great Novak Djokovic in the 2024 and 2025 quarter-finals, respectively, both in four sets.

Here's A Look At Carlos Alcaraz's Potential Path To The Final

First Round: Adam Walton

Second Round: Yannick Hanfmann/Qualifier/Lucky Loser

Third Round: Corentin Moutet/Sebastian Korda/Qualifier/Lucky Loser

Fourth Round: Tommy Paul/Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

Quarterfinal: Alex de Minaur/Alexander Bublik/Flavio Cobolli

Semifinal: Alexander Zverev/Daniil Medvedev/Andrey Rublev/Felix Auger-Aliassime

Final: Jannik Sinner/Novak Djokovic/Ben Shelton/Taylor Fritz/Lorenzo Musetti

Drawn in the top half, the 22-year-old is eyeing a Career Grand Slam. He has already won the French Open (2024, 2025), Wimbledon (2023, 2024), and the US Open (2022, 2025) twice each.

Men's Singles Seeded Players

1. Carlos Alcaraz (Spain); 2. Jannik Sinner (Italy); 3. Alexander Zverev (Germany); 4. Novak Djokovic (Serbia); 5. Lorenzo Musetti (Italy); 6. Alex de Minaur (Australia); 7. Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada); 8. Ben Shelton (USA); 9. Taylor Fritz (USA); 10. Alexander Bublik (Kazakhstan); 11. Daniil Medvedev (Russia); 12. Casper Ruud (Norway); 13. Andrey Rublev (Russia); 14. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (Spain); 15. Karen Khachanov (Russia); 16. Jakub Mensik (Czechia); 17. Jiri Lehecka (Czechia); 18. Francisco Cerundolo (Argentina); 19. Tommy Paul (USA); 20. Flavio Cobolli (Italy); 21. Denis Shapovalov (Canada); 22. Luciano Darderi (Italy); 23. Tallon Griekspoor (Netherlands); 24. Arthur Rinderknech (France); 25. Learner Tien (USA); 26. Cameron Norrie (UK); 27. Brandon Nakashima (USA); 28. Joao Fonseca (Brazil); 29. Frances Tiafoe (USA); 30. Valentin Vacherot (Monaco); 31. Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece); 32. Corentin Moutet (France).

Australian Open 2026 Telecast And Live Streaming Info

In India and the sub-continent, the Australian Open 2026 will be telecast live on Sony Sports Network, and live streaming will be available on the SonyLiv app and website.

For other countries and regions, [check details here] https://ausopen.com/broadcasters

Australia Open 2026 Singles Schedule

First Round: January 18, 19 and 20

Second Round: January 21 and 22

Third Round: January 23 and 24

Fourth Round: January 25 and 26

Quarter-finals: January 27 and 28

Semi-finals: January 29 (women)

Semi-finals: January 30 (men)

Final: January 31 (women)

Final: February 1 (men)

Australian Open In Brief

The Australian Open is one of the four Grand Slam tournaments, and is held each year around the last two weeks of January, during the summer break Down Under.

It's played outdoors on hard courts at Melbourne Park, located along the Yarra River. The venue has retractable roofs at Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court Arena and John Cain Arena.

Also known as the Grand Slam of the Asia-Pacific, it was founded in 1905. The women's singles winner is presented with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup, while the men's singles winners get to lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup.

Australian Open Prize Money

Australian Open prize money has increased by 16% from last year (96.5 million Australian dollars in 2025) to a record total of 111.5m AUD (USD 75m). The women's and men's singles champions will earn 4.15 m AUD (USD 2.8m), a 19% increase from last year.