Top 5 Storylines Entering the 2026 ATP Season

At this point, there is really nothing Djokovic can do, apart from maybe beating both Alcaraz and Sinner back-to-back on his way to a 25th Major title, that would meaningfully add to his legacy. And no bad loss he suffers now would diminish it. His cement has been dry for many years. So what is he still doing on tour? Is the plain motivation to grind through a windy afternoon in Monte Carlo, likely ending in a loss, when he could instead be in the Maldives, still strong enough for a man who has done it all?

If it is, then fair play. I truly believe the greats should retire on their own terms, not when viewers, fans, or commentators get tired of them or want to shield them from “ugly losses,” as is the case with so many legends. But wouldn’t it be nice, just for a change, for tennis to have a farewell tour like other sports do—especially when one of the Mount Rushmore players is still competing at an elite (but not Major-winning) level? It would mark the symbolic end of tennis’s true golden era, and something I wouldn’t be against.

Is this it for the 1990s Generation?

While tennis fans and pundits may argue that the rise of Alcaraz and Sinner right after the Big Three era was simply good timing and luck, we often conveniently overlook the 10-to-15-year period in between, consisting of players born in the 1990s—an era that truly underwhelmed.

The 90s decade produced just two Major titles, both at the US Open, won by Dominic Thiem in 2020 and Daniil Medvedev in 2021. The numbers, when compared both to their predecessors (who dominated them when they first arrived on tour) and their successors (who are dominating them now), are startling. And it increasingly feels like the opportunity to add a third Major title to that total has already passed.

While it’s fair to say that these players simply were not as good as the ones before and after them, it’s also true that they suffered from some bad luck, which also contributed to the discrepancy in achievements. But without diving too deep into that, the reality is that both Alcaraz and Sinner are now clearly superior all-around players. Even worse for the 1990s generation, most of them have already begun to decline, with Thiem retired and Medvedev, Zverev, and Tsitsipas looking more like top-20 players than legitimate threats to the top two.

2026 might be their final chance for one last big push, but everything points to their window having already closed.

Does a Challenger to the Duopoly Emerge?

Much of the 2025 tennis season was a two-man race. While this gave us matches played at the highest level the sport currently has to offer, it also made many tournaments somewhat predictable, with everyone expecting another SinCaraz title.

Their dominance was so stark that it even caused current or former players (ahem, Mr. Federer) to float conspiracy theories. While none of that talk has any real merit, Alcaraz and Sinner proved themselves across all three surfaces and all conditions this year, it is true that tennis would greatly benefit from more players levelling up to challenge the duo who have split the last eight Major titles.

A few names stand out, but all with caveats. Jack Draper looked promising early in the year before injuries, which are becoming a theme for him, took him out again.

Holger Rune is likely to miss a large portion, if not all, of 2026 while rehabbing a torn Achilles tendon. Musetti doesn’t seem to have the ceiling or the all-surface game to be a constant threat. Elite opponents consistently expose the major flaws in Ben Shelton’s game. Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, or Alexander Zverev would need to peak out of their minds and hope to avoid facing both Alcaraz and Sinner in the same draw. Mensik is too hot-and-cold to realistically threaten them at Majors. The most interesting name is 19-year-old Joao Fonseca, whose upside looks promising, though the true breakthrough may still be a year or two away.

Nevertheless, tennis is practically begging for someone to step up and claim the No.3 spot. As things stand, the points gap between world No.2 and world No.3 is larger than the gap between world No.3 and world No.1000. It’s time for the field to stand up and offer at least some resistance before the sport becomes a two-man game.

Does Any On-Tour Change Occur?

Despite minimal drama on court outside of Alcaraz-Sinner showdowns, 2025 had its fair share of noise off it. Do we all remember that PTPA lawsuit that initially seemed groundbreaking but has since faded into obscurity? What about the year-long calls for better player welfare—an issue serious enough that even the usually reserved Sinner publicly criticised the sport’s governing bodies?

And then there is the never-ending debate about scheduling: too many mandatory events, too short an off-season, and a calendar that may be contributing to career-changing injuries like Rune’s in Stockholm. Alcaraz spoke out several times, and other players, though with less star power than the Spaniard, echoed the same concerns. But the question remains: will these complaints bring real change, or will they be lost in the dust of history like countless others before?

While the latter seems more likely, the mounting pressure, combined with injuries to players fans want to watch, might finally push tennis toward a more manageable calendar. Then again, as I write this, I’m reminded that even Masters tournaments are slowly shifting to a two-week model… sigh. Why couldn’t the players have spoken up before the contracts and changes were finalised?

Who Completes the Career Grand Slam

Sure, someone improving enough to truly challenge Alcaraz and Sinner for the big titles would be great for the sport. But let’s be real—a big part of why people watch tennis is to witness the extraordinary, to see greatness unfold in real time. And next year, tennis has the rare opportunity to deliver exactly that for two different players at two different tournaments.

Both Alcaraz and Sinner enter 2026 with a chance to complete the Career Grand Slam. Alcaraz would become the youngest man ever to do so, and both should feel confident about joining an exclusive list of just eight men. First, Alcaraz gets his chance in Melbourne—a prospect he has spoken about for over a year.

Then, in Paris, Sinner will have his shot to bury the ghosts of the past, having come just one point away from winning the French Open in 2025. Interestingly, the tournaments each man is targeting have been won by the other for the past two seasons. So to make history, they will almost certainly have to go through each other yet again.

And they wouldn’t have it any other way.