Greg Rusedski says who has the tougher draw out of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open

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Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are both chasing history at this year’s Australian Open.

Alcaraz, who reclaimed world number one status last year, will bid to become the youngest player in history to complete the career Grand Slam.

The Spaniard, 22 years and eight months old, is aiming to beat the record currently held by Don Budge, who achieved the feat in 1938, aged 22 years and 11 months.

Sinner, on the other hand, is in search of a three-peat Down Under, having emerged victorious at the first major of the year in both 2024 and 2025.

Only Novak Djokovic has won three consecutive Australian Open titles in the Open Era, which he managed twice.

Greg Rusedski compares the draws of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

The Australian Open draw was announced on Thursday, with Alcaraz and Sinner learning their fates.

Alcaraz has been handed a favourable draw in Melbourne, and will avoid both his Italian rival and Djokovic until the final.

For Sinner, however, a three-peat may end up becoming a harder task than he would have hoped for.

The 24-year-old finds himself in the same quarter as Ben Shelton and is on a third-round collision course with teenage sensation Joao Fonseca.

In an episode of ‘Off Court with Greg‘, former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski said: “[Jannik] Sinner has got the harder of the two sections, no question about it.

“[Novak] Djokovic, [Ben] Shelton, [Karen] Khachanov, [Joao] Fonseca, I think [Carlos] Alcaraz has the better route to the final.”

Jannik Sinner’s potential route to the 2026 Australian final

Sinner will begin his Australian Open title defence against Hugo Gaston in round one, whom he leads 2-0 in the head-to-head, and his second-round opponent will be either James Duckworth or Dino Prizmic.

In the third round, Sinner could be faced with Luca Nardi, Ethan Spizzirri or Yibing Wu, but he will most likely be going toe-to-toe with Fonseca for the very first time at a tour-level event.

Potential fourth-round opponents come in the form of Karen Khachanov, Luciano Darderi, Alex Michelsen and Sebastian Baez.

In the quarterfinals, Sinner could play Shelton, Casper Ruud, Denis Shapovalov, or Valentin Vacherot, while Djokovic, Taylor Fritz and Lorenzo Musetti are probable semifinal assignments for the four-time major champion.

Sinner’s potential opponent in the championship match could be Alexander Zverev, Alex de Minaur, or even Felix Auger-Aliassime, but he will most likely be playing Alcaraz for the fourth consecutive time in a Grand Slam final.