2026 Australian Open: Alcaraz Overcomes Zverev, Reaches First Australian Open Final, Eyes Career Grand Slam

On January 30th Beijing time, the 2026 Australian Open men's singles semifinals began. In the first daytime semifinal, world No.1 Alcaraz fought a marathon match against Zverev, ultimately prevailing 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-7(4), 7-5. This five-set thriller, lasting 5 hours and 27 minutes, was the longest match of the tournament. Alcaraz reached his first Australian Open final, improving his best performance at Melbourne Park and coming just one win away from completing a career Grand Slam.

Alcaraz

Eason Chan Watching from the Sidelines

Both players held serve strongly in the early stages of the first set. As the match progressed, Alcaraz gradually adapted to Zverev’s rhythm on return. In the seventh game, he earned a break point but couldn’t convert it. Then, in the ninth game, he secured his first break and followed it up with a dominant love game to close the set 6-4.

Alcaraz

In the second set, Alcaraz faltered in the sixth game, allowing Zverev to capitalize with a break. However, Zverev played cautiously in his service game to close the set, which gave Alcaraz a chance to break back immediately and restore parity. The set went to a tiebreak, where the players traded points evenly until Alcaraz pulled ahead from 5-5 to win 7-5 and take the second set.

For most of the third set, both players held serve efficiently. Late in the set, Alcaraz suffered a right thigh strain, which severely limited his movement. After holding serve, the set proceeded to a tiebreak. Due to his injury, Alcaraz’s mobility and power were compromised, and Zverev won the tiebreak 7-3. In the fourth set, despite his physical limitations, Alcaraz battled with grit and solid technique. The set again reached a tiebreak, where Zverev outperformed him 7-4 to even the match.

Zverev

Although Alcaraz’s condition improved somewhat toward the end of the fourth set, his unforced errors increased. He was broken early in the decisive fifth set, giving Zverev a 2-0 lead. Alcaraz stayed aggressive on return games and managed to break back during Zverev’s service game that could have ended the match. In the final service game, Zverev played cautiously, allowing Alcaraz to break again and clinch the set 7-5, securing the victory.

With this win, Alcaraz not only reclaimed the head-to-head advantage over Zverev at 7-6 but also reached the Australian Open final for the first time in his fifth appearance. His opponent in the final will be decided between Sinner and Djokovic. As the 2025 runner-up, Zverev failed to match last year’s result, which means his world ranking will drop to No.4 in next week’s update, while Djokovic will move back up to No.3.

(Text and editing by Wang Fei)