When Australian Open 2026 launched in October, many of the high-profile guests at the launch event were asked what they were most looking forward to seeing on court in January.

The near-universal answer? A final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

And who wouldn’t want to see that, given how the Alcaraz-Sinner rivalry hit new heights in 2025? The world’s dominant top two clashed in three consecutive Grand Slam finals, setting the stage for a fourth straight at the Australian Open – the only major tournament where they’re yet to meet.

But it got us thinking: what are the other rivalries in tennis, beyond Alcaraz v Sinner, that excite fans and light up Centre Courts around the world?

This question was discussed on the latest episode of The Tennis, and we’re diving into it too, examining some other brilliant match-ups we’re hoping to see at AO 2026.

Aryna Sabalenka v Iga Swiatek

Alcaraz and Sinner are the world’s top two men, so how about a clash between the world’s No.1 and No.2 women?

“I think all the superstars on the women’s side of tennis at the moment are really interchangeable with their rivalries, but I went with the top two: Sabalenka and Swiatek,” said The Tennis panellist and ausopen.com contributor Rhys de Deugd. “I think in terms of contrasting games, [they have that] a little bit too.

“When they come up against each other, it is the best spectacle in women’s tennis at the moment.”

Sabalenka versus Swiatek has, historically, been a phenomenal occasion; their 2024 Madrid Open final clash was considered the finest of that WTA season. Between them, they own 10 Grand Slam titles, and for the past three seasons have ended the year as the top two players.

Swiatek leads the head-to-head 8-5, but Sabalenka has won the past two, the most recent of those in the Roland Garros semifinals – one of only two matches between them at Slams.

The match-up has taken on a mystique due to how often they’ve narrowly missed meeting in Grand Slam finals. Sabalenka was a set away from facing Swiatek in the 2025 Wimbledon final, and held a match point in the 2023 Roland Garros semifinals, only to lose to Karolina Muchova, who went on to play Swiatek.

It was the same in the AO 2025 semifinals, where after Sabalenka had sealed her place in the final, Swiatek held a match point to meet her there – only to fall to Madison Keys.

Will we finally get that highly-anticipated Grand Slam final at AO 2026?

Novak Djokovic v Alexander Zverev

They’re the world’s highest-ranked players after Alcaraz and Sinner, and Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev are no stranger to meeting on the game’s biggest stages.

Zverev first played Djokovic more than eight years ago in May 2017, upsetting the then-world No.2 in the Rome final for his first ATP Masters title.

Since then, they’ve met five times in big Grand Slam matches – a combination of quarters and semis – and have engaged in gruelling battles on almost every occasion.

PODCAST: Listen to the latest episode of The Tennis

Djokovic has gotten the better of Zverev in four of those five Slam meetings, but Zverev pushed Djokovic to five in the 2021 US Open semifinals, and kept him on court for almost three-and-a-half hours in their four-set battle at Roland Garros this year.

Sadly, their closely-contested Australian Open 2025 semifinal came to a premature end when Djokovic retired due to an injury he sustained in his thrilling quarterfinal win over Alcaraz.

Djokovic leads the head-to-head 9-5, but he and Zverev have split the past six meetings.

Aryna Sabalenka v Coco Gauff

We could have looked at Sabalenka’s compelling rivalry against American No.2 Amanda Anisimova – which she trails 5-6 – but instead we’re dissecting her rivalry against American No.1 Coco Gauff, poised at a near-identical 6-6.

Their 2025 Roland Garros final cut through in so many ways.

Gauff, then world No.2, met top-ranked Sabalenka in what was the first 1 v 2 women’s Grand Slam final in more than seven years – and first at Roland Garros in 12 years. Sabalenka and Gauff became the first women to play off in multiple Grand Slam finals since Serena Williams and Angelique Kerber in 2016.

But after Gauff beat Sabalenka in three sets in the 2023 US Open final, she repeated the feat in Paris in 2025 – much to Sabalenka’s displeasure.