Analysis 2026: Grand Slam Predictions, Who Will Reign in Tennis?

The first Grand Slam of the year came to an end last weekend, with Elena Rybakina and Carlos Alcaraz being crowned individual champions at the Australian Open.

Rybakina and Alcaraz: Dominance in Melbourne

For Rybakina, it was an impressive return to the top, securing her second Grand Slam title. The 26-year-old tennis player, who faced challenges on and off the court after her victory at Wimbledon 2022, closed the 2025 season with the WTA Finals trophy. In Melbourne, she strung together a series of resounding victories before facing the world number 1, Aryna Sabalenka, in a rematch of the 2023 final. Rybakina prevailed with a score of 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, and now rises to number 3 in the ranking.

Regarding Alcaraz, his 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 victory over Novak Djokovic solidified his position as the best player in the world. By obtaining his sixth Grand Slam trophy at only 22 years old, Alcaraz became the youngest man to achieve the career Grand Slam. He achieved this by defeating the best player of all time, frustrating Djokovic’s attempt to obtain his historic 25th Grand Slam title.

Four different women, Madison Keys, Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek, and Sabalenka, captured the Grand Slam trophies in 2025, with Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner splitting the men’s singles titles for the second year in a row. Will a similar trend emerge in 2026? Could there be a first-time champion? And can any man challenge the “Big Two”?

It’s about four months until the start of Roland Garros. These are the main contenders in the other Grand Slam tournaments of 2026.

Roland Garros

May 24 – June 7, Paris 2025 Champions: Coco Gauff and Carlos Alcaraz

Top female contenders in 2026: Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, Mirra Andreeva

Despite falling in the semifinals to Sabalenka in 2025, Swiatek is a four-time champion at Roland Garros and should remain the favorite until further notice. She struggled on the surface in 2025, failing to reach a final in any clay event, but there is no one on the circuit with more success on the Parisian clay, and she should be more motivated than ever after last year’s early exit and two disappointing results at the US Open and the Australian Open.

Of course, Sabalenka will also not lack motivation. She was devastated after losing to Gauff in the 2025 final (and again on Saturday against Rybakina) and would love to win her first major outside of a hard court. Having won the Madrid Open 1000 level three times on the surface, including in 2025, she is more than capable of doing so.

Gauff, however, will seek to successfully defend a Grand Slam title for the first time. Although she has had some problems since her triumph in Paris, she has proven to be one of the best on the surface. She reached the finals of 2025 in both Madrid and Rome and is almost impossible to beat when she plays her best. Svitolina, a semi-finalist at the Australian Open, has had a spectacular start to the season. The 31-year-old player won the title in Auckland to open 2026 and followed it up with an impressive performance in Melbourne that included top 10 wins over Gauff and Andreeva. She has reached the quarter-finals in Paris five times throughout her career, including last year, and is a seven-time WTA clay court champion. Could this finally be the year she wins her first Grand Slam title? What a story it would be. Andreeva, the 18-year-old prodigy, also hopes this will be her turn to achieve the milestone. She reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2024 (and won an Olympic silver medal at Roland Garros in doubles that same year) and has recorded some quality wins at the venue. Andreeva has sometimes faltered in big moments or difficult environments, such as against the relative unknown Frenchwoman Lois Boisson in the quarter-finals of 2025, but a Grand Slam title still seems inevitable for the young star.

Main male contenders in 2026: Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Lorenzo Musetti The 2025 final between Alcaraz and Sinner was an instant classic, an exciting five-set match and the second-longest Grand Slam final in history. It’s hard to put into words how epic the match was and the level displayed by both players. So, that being said, it’s difficult to imagine a scenario where someone not named Alcaraz or Sinner takes the trophy in 2026. Alcaraz, the world number 1, is the two-time defending champion and has arguably been the most consistent on the surface in recent years. He also won two of the three Masters 1000 level titles on clay last season. And Sinner, perhaps with something extra to prove after his early exit at the Australian Open, will seek to complete the career Grand Slam in Paris. He only has one clay title in his career, but he reached the final in Rome last season in his first event after a three-month suspension, and then advanced to the final of the French Open championship. Then there’s Zverev, the 2024 runner-up. He has reached the quarterfinals or better in seven of the last eight years and is regularly strong on clay. He pushed Alcaraz to five incredible sets in the semifinals in Melbourne and proved he can play high-level tennis. The French Open remains the three-time finalist’s best chance of finally winning a coveted Grand Slam title. Although injuries have plagued him at inopportune times, Musetti certainly needs to be considered among the contenders if he is healthy. Only one set away from reaching the semi-finals in Melbourne before having to retire with leg pain, and having suffered a similar injury that derailed him in the semi-finals of last year’s French Open, Musetti has shown that he can reach the final stages of Grand Slam tournaments. Now the big questions are: How can he stay in top form and how far can he go?

Wimbledon

June 29 – July 12, London 2025 Champions: Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner

Top female contenders in 2026: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Amanda Anisimova, Elena Rybakina

Grass continues to be the most unpredictable surface for women, largely due to its incredibly short window on the annual calendar. With only three weeks separating the end of the French Open and the start of Wimbledon, most players only play in one or two preparation tournaments on grass and rarely practice on the surface outside of that time. It can be tricky for many, and the adjustment from slow clay to much faster grass is a challenge. That said, Swiatek found a way to crack the code last year, after several seasons of mediocre results at the All England Club, by reaching her first grass court final in Bad Homburg and then looking as dominant as anyone at Wimbledon during the fortnight. In the final, she needed less than an hour to defeat Anisimova 6-0, 6-0. After that performance, it would be impossible not to include her among the favorites in 2026. Sabalenka had been largely considered the player to beat at the All England Club last season, and reached her third semi-final at the tournament before being surprised by Anisimova in a three-set thriller. Although she has never won a title on grass, and Wimbledon remains the only Grand Slam in which she has not yet reached the final, she remains the most consistent player in Grand Slam tournaments and has advanced to the semi-finals or better in every Grand Slam tournament she has played since the US Open in 2022.

Few predicted that Anisimova would reach the final, her first in a major, in 2025, but boy did she do it, after another appearance in the final at Queen’s Club. The tournament was a major breakthrough for Anisimova and, despite the uneven final, propelled her into the top 10 for the first time. With an aggressive game that suits grass well, she recorded the most wins among WTA players on the surface (12) in 2025 and should be brimming with confidence at the All England Club this summer.

Speaking of confidence, no woman has won more matches since Wimbledon last summer than Rybakina. With such a strong start in 2026, the 2022 Wimbledon champion (and 2024 semi-finalist) could reclaim her status as queen of the grass court in July.

Top male contenders in 2026: Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Taylor Fritz

Sinner and Alcaraz have won the last three Wimbledon titles, with Sinner defeating Alcaraz in the final in 2025. In a place where experience matters, they certainly remain the men to beat. Nobody has been more dominant on the surface in the last three seasons than Alcaraz. He has won four titles on grass, including twice at Wimbledon and at Queen’s Club in 2025, and holds a career record of 35-4. The defeat to Sinner was his first loss in a final on the surface. And Sinner, who has reached the quarter-finals or better in four of his five Wimbledon appearances and has a 2-0 record in finals on grass courts, has clearly figured out his game on the surface. Another final between the two seems likely. But Djokovic is a seven-time Wimbledon champion and reached the finals in 2023 and 2024. While he was very close in Melbourne, Wimbledon could be his best chance to finally win his record-setting 25th Grand Slam title. It won’t be easy, and he has now lost in the previous four Grand Slam tournaments to Sinner or Alcaraz, but the grass could be the most favorable place to reverse the trend in 2026. Although it’s certainly more of a long-term bet, Fritz shouldn’t be ruled out either. The American stalwart made his first semi-final appearance at the All England Club last year after two previous quarter-final runs. He reached the final of the US Open in 2024, but grass seems to suit him best, and he is a five-time ATP champion on the surface, including two titles in 2025. If anyone is capable of a surprise run, and a trophy, it’s Fritz.

US Open

August 30 – September 13, New York 2025 Champions: Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz

Top female contenders in 2026: Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, Naomi Osaka, Victoria Mboko, Iva Jovic

It’s impossible to know how the players will perform and feel so late in the season, as injuries, fatigue, and exhaustion can often be factors. But the best players still tend to find their way to the second week of the tournament, and 2026 shouldn’t be any different. Sabalenka is now the two-time defending champion, and thrives on the energy, attention, and crowd of New York. She couldn’t complete the rare triple crown at the Australian Open in 2025 and would welcome the opportunity to do so at the US Open. Gauff, the 2023 champion, was not at her best in the tournament last season. She had problems with her serve before it started and changed her coaching staff a few days before the game began. Despite that, she still reached the fourth round and has had more success since then. She reached the quarterfinals in Melbourne, and although she still has moments of vulnerability, no one will have more support from the crowd than Gauff in New York. Anisimova, the 2025 runner-up, will also have the crowd on her side. After exciting victories during last year’s tournament, including those against Swiatek and Osaka, she can step up in the big moments and will seek to go one step further in September. After the surprising semi-final run of two-time champion Osaka last season, she will be hungrier than ever to return to the top. The 2026 season hasn’t exactly gone according to plan so far: she was dealing with an illness during the United Cup and had to withdraw from the Australian Open before her third-round match due to an abdominal injury, but if she is healthy, she is still dangerous on the hard court. Although the US Open has seen more expected winners in recent seasons, it had previously crowned a series of surprising winners, such as Emma Raducanu in 2021 and Bianca Andreescu in 2019. Could 19-year-old Mboko or 18-year-old Jovic be the latest young star to lift the trophy in New York? Both have shown flashes of incredible promise and are at the highest rankings of their careers, with Mboko, number 13, winning the 2025 Canadian Open and Jovic, number 20, reaching her first Grand Slam quarterfinal in Melbourne. Both will have more experience by the end of the season. Never say never.

Main male contenders in 2026: Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, Ben Shelton, Learner Tien Alcaraz defeated Sinner in the final in 2025, and Sinner won it the previous year. Did we mention their collective dominance?

Each seemed practically unstoppable during their runs to the championship match last year, and Alcaraz continued that same level of dominance against a surprisingly flat Sinner in the final. At the Australian Open, Sinner showed some vulnerability in a five-set loss against Djokovic, but Alcaraz rarely faltered. After nearly five and a half hours on the court in the semifinals, which included injuries, vomiting, and cramps, Alcaraz still found a way to recover and defeat Djokovic when it mattered most two days later.

Although others can certainly challenge them on the hard court on any given day, they remain the overwhelming favorites for the last major of the year. Surprising, we know.

And if Djokovic, who will then be 39 years old, is still chasing number 25, he should never be overlooked. He won his last major at the US Open in 2023 and, as he reminded Sinner at the Australian Open, he still has what it takes for big wins on the surface.

Djokovic, Alcaraz, and Sinner are loved worldwide, but if any of them are playing against a top-tier and very entertaining showman like Shelton, they would likely find the crowd against them. Shelton, who thrives in Grand Slam tournaments and in front of giant crowds, could capitalize on that opportunity. He has never beaten Alcaraz and has beaten Sinner once in 10 attempts (losing in their most recent match in the Australian Open quarterfinals), but he keeps improving and could be the one to do it in New York. Finally, although choosing Tien might be more than a little far-fetched at this moment, the 20-year-old has shown that he can pull off a surprise (just ask Daniil Medvedev!) and advanced to the first major quarter-final of his career in Melbourne. He reached two ATP finals at the end of the 2025 season, his first full year on the circuit, and even won the Moselle Open. He seems to be improving and gaining more confidence with each tournament he plays. It’s been almost 23 years since an American man won an individual major title. Could Shelton or Tien finally end the drought?