Preview Australian Open Day One | World No.1 Alcaraz and Sabalenka commence title quests, Raducanu looks to get back on track as Williams set to return

The long wait is nearly over. The Australian Open is set to kick off on January 18 with the best players in the world set to take to the court with one goal in mind: to win the Grand Slam title.

As been the tradition in recent times, the tournament will start on Sunday with a blockbuster day of tennis, featuring the two world number one's with a legend returning to town among the highlights of day one in Melbourne.

Carlos Alcaraz has been virtually unbeatable at times when competing on the ATP Tour. The level he consistently produces is absurd, and him being ranked as the world number one going into the event is a fitting place for a champion to be.

However, he has never been able to convert this Down Under. Without any form of title or even final in Oceania, he is desperately looking to overturn this bad form to clinch the final Grand Slam title he needs for his collection, having collected two of the others. This would make him the youngest player to achieve a career Grand Slam, comfortably dislodging Rafael Nadal who did it at 24 years and 101 days old.

The Spaniard has a lot of unsettling question marks around him, with long-term coach Juan Carlos Ferrero no longer in his camp. It will be intriguing to see how he copes with Samuel Lopez now overlooking his progress. The first match on schedule for Alcaraz will be against Adam Walton on Rod Laver at night, with the Aussie looking to cause a seismic upset.

Since his final last year, Alexander Zverev's career has somewhat slowed down. He has not been able to produce that scintillating form that saw him reach the final in Melbourne last year, where he was defeated by a rampant Jannik Sinner for more Grand Slam misery.

Zverev needs to overturn his prior major form from last year, which saw him win just two matches at Wimbledon and US Open combined. The world number three could come tumbling off his perch if he is not careful, with Gabriel Diallo his opening test.

Outside of those two, a number of other players on the ATP look to get their campaign off with a win. Alexander Bublik will enter his first event as a top 10 player after reaching that phenomenal milestone with a title in the Hong Kong Open, continuing his blistering streak of success. He faces off against Jenson Brooksby.

Frances Tiafoe has lost to a brace of Russians in the form of Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov to kick off the year. Fortunately, he will stary away from Russian opponents to a home competitor in the form of qualifier Jason Kubler. Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Cameron Norrie will be leading the Brits Down Under with Jack Draper's ongoing absence. He is set to line up against Benjamin Bonzi.

Over to the WTA, and this title is predicted to be a lot more wide open. One guarantee it feels is Aryna Sabalenka will be here or there abouts at the business end. The Belarusian has enjoyed domination at Melbourne Park in recent years, making three finals in a row. It was the place of her maiden major triumph in 2023 against Elena Rybakina before getting the better of Zheng Qinwen a year later.

She was the overwhelming favourite for the title last year, but was upset by Madison Keys in a thrilling final. The four-time Grand Slam champion is hugely determined to regain her crown and continue this assertive dominance in Australia.

The 27-year-old has already won a title this year, defeating Marta Kostyuk in the Brisbane International final. She received a huge boost in that event. Not just that she was in fine form, but a lot of her rivals fell early, a lot of them coincidentally to the hands of Kostyuk.

The quest to win Australian Open title number three begins against French wildcard Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah.

Emma Raducanu was the number one seed in the Hobart International, but succumbed to a hugely disappointing defeat to Taylah Preston, who began the event ranked outside the top 200.

The former US Open champion has shown signs of improvement, but deep runs in these big events have been sparse. Especially in Grand Slams, with defeats to Sabalenka, Swiatek and Rybakina last year. This looks to repeat itself with a third round clash against Sabalenka on the cards. She needs to get there first, and will take on Thailand's Mananchaya Sawangkaew on Margaret Court Arena.

First on Rod Laver is two-time Grand Slam finalist Jasmine Paolini, who has never made it past the fourth round in Melbourne. The world number seven takes on former top 30 player Aliaksandra Sasnovich. While that is ongoing, Maria Sakkari, who has also never made it past the fourth round, comes up against Leolia Jeanjean.

The world number 11 and 12 also kick off their campaigns on Sunday. Ekaterina Alexandrova ended 2025 in the top 10, but has since been bumped down thanks to Belinda Bencic's incredible showings in the United Cup. She will play Zeynep Sonmez while the recent ASB champion Elina Svitolina looks to continue her unbeaten 2026 with a tie against Cristina Bucsa. Fellow Ukrainian Kostyuk also look to continue the positive momentum with a first round clash versus Elsa Jacquemot.

Venus Williams is set to make a hugely popular return to the Australian Open. The seven-time Grand Slam champion has never tasted victory in this particular event, making it to the final in 2003 and 2017 while on both occasions losing to her sister Serena Williams.

This showcase of longevity is set to make her the oldest female competitor in the competition at the age of 45-years-old. She is still as competitive as ever, coming off the back of featuring in the ASB Classic and Hobart International. Her first round contest will be against Serbian Olga Danilovic, who made the fourth round last year. It will be the final match on John Cain Arena, closing out what is set to be a thrilling first day of action.