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Despite complaints from many of the world's best players, the calendar remains jam-packed, leaving plenty of room for drama. The non-stop nature of the tours also allows for several intriguing storylines to develop throughout the season.
The Career Grand Slam race
In 2026, three players at the top of the game stand just a single major title away from completing the Career Grand Slam.
On the men's side, the two stars who have separated themselves from the chasing pack, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, are both on the verge of history. The former will have the first bite at the cherry, with the Australian Open this month the only Grand Slam he has yet to win.
With six majors to his name already (2x French Open, 2x Wimbledon, 2x US Open), the Spaniard has already spoken about how desperate he is to win in Melbourne, which would make him the youngest man in the Open Era to achieve the Career Slam.
"In 2026, I’d rather win Australia alone than two Grand Slams," he said towards the end of 2025.
Interestingly, Alcaraz has never made it past the quarter-final stage at the Australian Open, so two-time defending champion and rival Sinner will be hoping he doesn't improve on that, which would give the Italian the chance to complete the set first later this year.
Sinner has won four Grand Slam titles (2x Australian Open, 1x Wimbledon, 1x US Open), and the French Open is the only one that has eluded him. He came agonisingly close to getting his hands on the crown in Paris last year, squandering three match points in an all-time great final against Alcaraz.
Meanwhile, on the women's side, world number two Iga Swiatek is in a similar position to Alcaraz, needing to win in Australia this month to achieve the feat.
The Pole has won six Slams (4x French Open, 1x Wimbledon, 1x US Open), and would become the ninth woman in history to win every major title.
Last year, she looked in great touch in Melbourne, before losing one of the matches of the year against Madison Keys in the semi-final, who went on to win the title.
'Sincaraz' duopoly
Men's tennis was utterly dominated by Alcaraz and Sinner in 2025, taking the sport to new heights. The pair met in six finals last year and have split the previous eight Grand Slams.
Frankly, no one can lay a glove on either one of them, and expectations at every single tournament are that they will meet each other in the final.
That is further illustrated by the fact that world number three Alexander Zverev is around a whopping 6,300 points behind Sinner in second, and holds only 5,105 points himself.
Can anyone nose their way in? Which young guns can make themselves a factor at the very summit of men's tennis?
Ben Shelton continues to look like he is missing a little bit of X-Factor. Jack Draper seemed the closest last year, but his fitness problems persist. Arthur Fils is also out injured, and Holger Rune hasn't developed as much as anticipated, with his struggles further compounded by suffering a brutal Achilles injury at the end of 2025.
Joao Fonseca is a super talent, but still way too raw.
What about the more established players? Taylor Fritz absolutely maximises his potential and ability, but remains some way short, while Zverev lacks the ruthlessness to compete with the best.
And what about the greatest men's tennis player of all time?
Djokovic's quest for 25
What Novak Djokovic is doing at 38 years old is truly extraordinary and is almost going under the radar a little. The legendary Serb reached the semi-finals at all four Grand Slams in 2025 and won career titles 100 and 101 in Geneva and Athens, respectively.
Yet he remains in a really awkward position. He is clearly better than everyone in the world besides Alcaraz and Sinner, but is some distance behind those two.
He is unable to really threaten either of the world's top two, losing to them at three of the four Slams in 2025. He has said retirement is not on the cards any time soon, but is there any way he can bridge the gap?
His body is not getting any younger, while Alcaraz and Sinner will only improve. But he still has goals and a desire to win. After all, he is just one Grand Slam title away from number 25, which would put him past Margaret Court as the player with the most major titles in history.
Perhaps his best opportunity would be if somehow, both Alcaraz and Sinner were knocked out earlier, leaving him to pick up the scraps and get his hands on another Slam.
Regardless, Djokovic's hunger remains admirable, and he will be box-office in 2026.
A jam-packed WTA Tour
While the top of men's tennis remains a two-horse race, the beauty of the women's game is how competitive and high-quality the summit is, making it unpredictable and enthralling.
In 2025, the Grand Slams were won by four different players (Keys - Australian Open, Coco Gauff - French Open, Swiatek - Wimbledon, Aryna Sabalenka - US Open), while Elena Rybakina won the WTA Finals.
Despite her consistency and her establishment as the world's best player, Sabalenka has proven vulnerable, losing in the finals of three of the five aforementioned tournaments.
Amanda Anisimova (more on her later) firmly put herself in the conversation of the world's best players alongside the likes of Sabalenka, Gauff and Swiatek. In addition, Rybakina's late-season return to form will make the rest of the WTA Tour take notice.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka began to show flashes of her best form, while Jessica Pegula and Jasmine Paolini continue to be consistent.
There is so much young talent, too. Teenagers Victoria Mboko, Iva Jovic, and Maya Joint enjoyed breakout seasons, 18-year-old Tereza Valentova slowly emerged, and, of course, the brilliant Mirra Andreeva captured two WTA 1000 titles and became a consistent top-10 player.
Anisimova's Grand Slam hunt
Anisimova was arguably the best story and most captivating player on the WTA Tour in 2025. Always acknowledged as a serious talent and blessed with one of the most outstanding backhands the game has ever seen, the American took a mental health break from the sport in 2023, before making her return in 2024.
After finding her feet once more, her 2025 was an utterly stellar one. Anisimova won her first two WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Beijing, and reached the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open.
She shot up to number four in the world rankings as a result and seems to be on the cusp of winning a maiden Grand Slam crown.
However, on both occasions, she was a little tense and was unable to hit top gear truly. A 6-0, 6-0 loss to Swiatek in the Wimbledon showpiece was heartbreaking, but she did show signs of improvement in he defeat to Sabalenka in New York.
Her mental strength has been on show throughout, too. After that defeat to Swiatek, she rebounded to beat her twice at the US Open and WTA Finals, and also outlasted Sabalenka in a thrilling Wimbledon semi-final.
Her development was a joy to watch in 2025, and if she keeps trending in a positive direction, a Grand Slam feels within reach. Can she pick one up in 2026?