Tennis News

Scouting Report: Auger-Aliassime, Wawrinka, Fils in Montpellier field

The ATP Tour heads to Montpellier this week for indoor ATP 250 action at the Open Occitanie, where Top 10 star and defending champion Felix Auger-Aliassime headlines the field.

The draw in southern France also includes Stan Wawrinka, competing in the final year of his career, and Top 30 stars Flavio Cobolli, Tallon Griekspoor and Tomas Machac. Meanwhile home favourite Arthur Fils makes his return to competitive action for the first time since last July.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to watch this week.

1) Felix seeks fast response: The No. 8 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Auger-Aliassime will aim to bounce back quickly after being forced to retire from his first-round match at the Australian Open due to cramp. The 25-year-old has plenty to be confident about in Montpellier: he is the defending champion there, and he has won seven of his eight ATP Tour crowns indoors. Auger-Aliassime’s opening opponent in France will be Wawrinka or Hamad Medjedovic.

2) Fils returns after six months out: Home fans will welcome back one of France’s top stars in Montpellier, where Arthur Fils will make his return to ATP Tour action after six months out due to a back injury. He takes on countryman Valentin Royer in the first round. The 21-year-old Fils reached the semi-finals on his only previous appearance in Montpellier in 2023, before he fell to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

3) Wild card Wawrinka: The Swiss began his final year on the ATP Tour with a series of battling performances across the United Cup and the Australian Open, where he reached the third round. The former World No. 3 Wawrinka now heads to Montpellier, where he will compete as a wild card and takes on Serbia’s Medjedovic first up. Hubert Hurkacz, another former Top 10 star who went 4-1 in singles play to help Poland lift the United Cup, starts against a qualifier.

4) Top 30 stars in action: Like Auger-Aliassime, Cobolli will hope to put a first-round exit in Australia behind him quickly under the roof in Montpellier. The Italian is the second seed in France, while Tallon Griekspoor is seeded third. Fourth seed Tomas Machac chases his second ATP 250 crown of the season after he triumphed in Adelaide in mid-January.

5) Home hopes Doumbia/Reboul lead doubles field: Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul lifted the Montpellier trophy together in 2024, and the French duo returns this year as the top seeds. Their rivals in the doubles draw include second seeds Jakob Schnaitter and Mark Wallner, while Wawrinka teams with big-serving home favourite Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

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A Slam four years in the making – Rybakina's return to top

Why ‘unstoppable’ Elena Rybakina will believe her Australian Open triumph can begin a period of sustained success after ending a four-year wait for her second major title.

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Why Djokovic needs Melbourne win more than Alcaraz with history on the line

Whoever wins the Australian Open men’s singles final will create history – but it feels like Novak Djokovic needs victory more than Carlos Alcaraz.

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'She basically capitulated' – is Sabalenka underachieving at Slams?

After losing another Grand Slam final – this time to Elena Rybakina at the Australian Open – BBC Sport asks if Aryna Sabalenka is underachieving at the majors.

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5 Live Sport: All About… Australian Open

Elena Rybakina beats Aryna Sabalenka in Melbourne to win her first Australian Open final.

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Rybakina beats Sabalenka in thrilling Australian Open final

Watch Elena Rybakina inflict further Grand Slam final heartbreak on world number one Aryna Sabalenka with a dramatic third-set fightback to win her first Australian Open title.

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Rybakina beats Sabalenka for first Australian Open title

Elena Rybakina inflicts further Grand Slam final heartbreak on Aryna Sabalenka with a stunning third-set fightback to win the Australian Open.

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GB's Skupski wins Australian Open doubles title

Great Britain’s Neal Skupski and American partner Christian Harrison win the Australian Open men’s doubles title in their first Grand Slam together.

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Carlos Alcaraz & Novak Djokovic: Australian Open history, Grand Slam results & more

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will face off Sunday in the 2026 Australian Open final, which is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. local time/8:30 a.m. GMT. Alcaraz is chasing his first Australian Open title, with which he would become the sixth man in the Open Era to complete the Career Grand Slam. Meanwhile Djokovic seeks a record-extending 11th Melbourne crown and a record-extending 25th major title overall.

Read all about Alcaraz and Djokovic’s results, records, statistics, and more at the Australian Open and Grand Slam tournaments.

What is Alcaraz’s record at the Australian Open?

Since making his Australian Open debut in 2021, Alcaraz has tallied a 17-4 win-loss record at the tournament. 

What is Djokovic’s record at the Australian Open? 

Since making his Australian Open debut in 2005, Djokovic has tallied a 104-10 win-loss record at the tournament, including a record 10 titles. 

What is Alcaraz’s best result at the Australian Open? 

Alcaraz’s run to the final at this year’s Australian Open is his best result in Melbourne.

What is Djokovic’s best result at the Australian Open?

Djokovic won the Australian Open in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2023. 

How far did Alcaraz advance at the Australian Open in 2025? 

Alcaraz lost 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 4-6 to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open quarter-finals in 2025 (Read more). 

How far did Djokovic advance at the Australian Open in 2025? 

Djokovic lost to Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals at the Australian Open in 2025. The Serbian was forced to retire due to injury after losing the first set 6-7(5) (Read more). 

Alcaraz’s Record at Grand Slam Tournaments

Djokovic’s Record at Grand Slam Tournaments

How many Grand Slam titles has Alcaraz won? 

Alcaraz has won six Grand Slam titles. 

How many Grand Slam titles has Djokovic won? 

Djokovic has won a record 24 Grand Slam titles. 

What was Alcaraz’s road to the Australian Open final? 

What was Djokovic’s road to the Australian Open final? 

When did Alcaraz and Djokovic previously meet in Grand Slam finals?

Alcaraz and Djokovic have already contested two major finals. Their first Grand Slam championship match came at 2023 Wimbledon, where Alcaraz prevailed 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4. A year later, Alcaraz downed Djokovic in the SW19 final again, claiming a 6-2, 6-2, 7-6(4) triumph.

What is the overall Lexus ATP Head2Head record between Alcaraz and Djokovic? 

Djokovic leads Alcaraz 5-4 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series. Five of their nine meetings have come at majors (3-2 Alcaraz), and four of the nine meetings have been finals (2-2). Alcaraz and Djokovic’s most recent meeting came in the 2025 US Open semi-finals, where Alcaraz won 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-2.

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Harrison/Skupski lift Australian Open trophy in first major as a team

Christian Harrison and Neal Skupski did not wait long to add a milestone moment to their fledgling partnership.

Competing in just their second tour-level event together, the American-British duo defeated home favourites Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans 7-6(4), 6-4 to claim the trophy Saturday at the Australian Open. Harrison and Skupski, who made their team debut in Adelaide just two weeks ago, held their nerve at key moments in front of a raucous afternoon crowd inside Rod Laver Arena to earn a one-hour, 49-minute championship-match triumph.

There were emotional scenes between two sets of brothers after match point. Harrison celebrated securing his maiden major title with his brother Ryan Harrison, who was courtside. Meanwhile former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Doubles Rankings Skupski, whose sole previous Grand Slam title came at Wimbledon in 2023, embraced his own brother and coach, Ken Skupski.

All the emotions 🤩@charrison94 & @nealskupski are your 2026 Australian Open Doubles Champions!

They dismissed Kubler/Polmans 7-6(4), 6-4 en route to the title.@AustralianOpen | #AO26 pic.twitter.com/G9IDvlwX1Y

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 31, 2026

“It’s obviously nice to get another Grand Slam,” said Skupski in the pair’s post-match press conference. “I was very close last year at the US Open and lost narrowly in the French. I look back on last year and kind of went over to see where it went wrong in the moments, and I learned from it.

“Christian has given me a new lease of life this year. We started obviously last week in Adelaide. He came to Baton Rouge for a week of training in December, which was amazing to get on court with him and get to know him a little bit more. It all feels well worth it now, picking up this trophy.”

Harrison said: “Unreal experience. This place is unreal to play. The crowds are incredible. For me, though, it was just simple. Just focused on just enjoying the moment with my partner. He brings a lot of experience. His level is just so high, and it really felt easy for me to just play my best tennis. So credit to him.”

Wild card pairing Kubler and Polmans battled admirably throughout the final, and they delighted the home fans by rallying from 2-5 in the opening set to force a tie-break. Yet the momentum of the match shifted dramatically after Harrison and Skupski won four consecutive points from 3/4 to move a set ahead.

The sixth-seeded Harrison and Skupski built on that tie-break success by crucially breaking serve in the third game of the second set, and they sealed victory on their second match point after Harrison fired an ace down the T.

That finish reflected how precise serving formed the foundation to Harrison and Skupski’s final victory. The duo won 80 per cent (43/54) of points behind their first serves, according to Infosys Stats.

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