Carlos Alcaraz completed his mission at the Australian Open, taking home the title for the first time and completing a career Grand Slam. He is one of only nine men to do so, and he had to defeat one of those players, Novak Djokovic, to win the final in Melbourne. Alcaraz now has seven major titles.
One of the most important aspects of all of that, though, is that the Spaniard is only 22 years old. This begs the question after Alcaraz has been so enormously successful at such a young age: How many Grand Slams can he win?
What appears clear is that he has only one rival currently, but the truth is that if Alcaraz and that rival, Jannik Sinner, consistently play their best when they face one another, the Spaniard is going to win more than the Italian. After all, in their last nine meetings, Sinner has only won twice.
Carlos Alcaraz wins the 2026 Australian Open title
Carlos Alcaraz didn't just cement his spot atop the ATP rankings at the Australian Open; he proved that he is the true alpha of men's tennis. He does have a few more dips of form than Sinner, but those also appear to be becoming less frequent.
Alcaraz had a lot to prove in Melbourne. One was that he could win a major without his longtime coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero. The two-part after seven years (and six major wins) in December. The rumor was that Alcaraz wanted more freedom over his off-court situations. It only took Alcaraz one Grand Slam to show he could win a major title no matter who his coach is.
The Spaniard also wanted to show that he could be ready to win big early in the year. Not only had Alcaraz never won the Australian Open before, but he had never even reached the semifinals. Now, it is obvious that he is going to be a threat for a calendar Grand Slam every year, starting with 2026.
He was broken by Djokovic twice in the first set, dropping the set 2-6. He then dominated the rest of the match, taking the last three sets 6-2, 6-3, 7-5. The 38-year-old Serb played well, but even in his prime, Alcaraz would have given him issues, just as he would have any other player who ever held a racket.
Can Carlos Alcaraz break Novak Djokovic's all-time Grand Slam title tally of 24? Of course. He could even do that well before he hits 30 years old. Alcaraz just needs 18 more major victories, so in six years, he might have enough trophies to claim he is the best to ever play. Few would doubt that, too.