New season promises great action, renewed rivalries and rising stars
The tennis offseason is a short one but we still suffered from some major withdrawal symptoms and couldn’t be more excited for the new season.
Play is already underway in Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong and we have our tennis wishlist ready with all the things we hope to witness on the tennis court in 2026.
Sixteen matches into the Carlos Alcaraz - Jannik Sinner rivalry, including six finals last year, and we still can’t get enough of these two tennis phenoms.
They’ve proven over and over again that when they stand across from each other on a court, magic will ensue, and they’ve separated themselves from the rest of the pack, evenly sharing the last eight Grand Slam titles between them.
Just like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic fuelled each other to up their games and took the sport to new heights, Sinner and Alcaraz have been elevating each other’s skillset with every passing duel and we cannot wait to see more of them in 2026.
Alcaraz is 10-6 overall against Sinner, and won four of their six final showdowns last season.
For this year, we wish for more ‘Sincaraz’ finals, close competition between them, and a challenger from the chasing pack to spring a surprise and throw himself in the mix.
The WTA delivered one of its most compelling and highest-quality seasons in 2025 and all we can wish for is: more of the same, please.
Four different women won each of the four majors and the eight Grand Slam finalist spots were occupied by just five women.
World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka made the finals in three of the four Slams, and capped her year by winning the US Open. Amanda Anisimova made two major finals, Iga Swiatek won her first Wimbledon, Madison Keys claimed a maiden Grand Slam in Melbourne and Coco Gauff secured a second major by winning Roland-Garros for the first time.
The core group of top 10 players dominated the big stage in 2025, bringing stability to the tour and raising the bar throughout the season.
They say sequels are never as good as the main feature film but in this case, we are very hopeful that 2026 can be even stronger than what was a sensational 2025 in women’s tennis.
Players like Elena Rybakina and Naomi Osaka enjoyed some good spells in the second half of last year and we’re hoping they continue their resurgence this season.
Anisimova brought her full-throttle brand of tennis and her inspirational comeback story to 2025. Having lost two Slam finals, our wish is for the American to go one better in 2026, and join the major winners’ circle.
Victoria Mboko, Alex Eala, Joao Fonseca, Learner Tien, Jakub Mensik… these are just some of the young talents on tour who made big statements in 2025.
Can they build on that and go even further in 2026? We certainly hope so.
Mirra Andreeva won two WTA 1000 titles last year but struggled to keep up her form. Seeing her back at her best is definitely on our wishlist.
Stan Wawrinka and Gaël Monfils have both announced that 2026 will be their final seasons on tour.
Two fan favourites with exceptional talent, Wawrinka and Monfils deserve a big sendoff and we hope they’re able to enjoy their swansongs by playing healthy all year, winning some good matches, and creating some unforgettable memories.
They’ll be truly missed!
All in all, we wish everyone a happy and healthy new year and a full season of thrilling tennis.
ROLAND-GARROS
18 May - 7 June 2026
