ALCARAZ SURVIVES SCARE AND KEEPS GRAND SLAM DREAM ALIVE
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz had to dig deep but eventually defeated Yannick Hanfmann in the second round of the 2026 Australian Open.
Alcaraz reached the third round at Melbourne Park after sealing a 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-2 straight-sets win.
From the very start on Rod Laver Arena, Alcaraz was challenged hard by the gritty German, who jumped out to an early lead and pushed the Spaniard all the way in a 78-minute opening set. It was the longest first set of Alcaraz’s Grand Slam career.
Hanfmann’s powerful baseline play and big serve had the world No. 1 on the back foot, but Alcaraz steadied himself and capitalised on key moments to take the breaker.
Once that pivotal first set was in the bag, Alcaraz seemed to find his rhythm. He tightened up his strokes, used his elite court coverage to great effect and gradually pulled away in the second and third sets.
Hanfmann, 12 years his senior and ranked outside the top 100, continued to battle but appeared to be affected by physical issues as the match wore on.
The match wasn’t all tension and baseline duels. In a lighter moment that went viral, a fan in the crowd playfully shouted “Carlos Nadal!”, mixing up Alcaraz with fellow Spaniard and legend Rafael Nadal.
The top seed cracked up mid-match, much to the delight of the crowd, before refocusing to close out the win.
With this victory, Alcaraz moves into the third round and stays on course in his quest for a career Grand Slam, a title he still hasn’t captured in Melbourne despite multiple deep runs. Up next, he’ll face either Corentin Moutet or Michael Zheng.
Image credit: ATP Tour