Novak Djokovic dominance over? Aryna Sabalenka to soar? Carlos Alcaraz changes? 10 big post-Australian Open questions

Published 29/01/2024 at 11:07 GMT

Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu feature in our post-Australian Open questions. The first Grand Slam of the season ended with Sinner and Sabalenka lifting the singles titles. There were plenty of questions from the tournament looking ahead to the rest of the 2024 tennis season.

Watch moment Sinner lifts Australian Open trophy after winning first Grand Slam

Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka are your 2024 Australian Open singles champions.

For Sinner it was a first Grand Slam title as he ended Novak Djokovic’s Melbourne reign in the semis and then fought back to beat Daniil Medvedev in an epic final. For Sabalenka it was a second major title, having won her first at the same tournament last year.

With the tournament now finished, there is plenty to unpack from the last 15 days, including some big questions looking ahead to the rest of the season…

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Is Djokovic’s Grand Slam dominance over?

Not the “beginning of the end” was how Novak Djokovic reflected on his Australian Open semi-final defeat to Jannik Sinner.

But after such a comprehensive loss it’s hard not to wonder whether this could be it for Djokovic’s Grand Slam dominance.

It wasn’t just the performance against Sinner that raised questions, as Djokovic also struggled to find his best form for most of the tournament.

McEnroe reflects on Djokovic loss signalling 'changing of the guard'

He says he still has “high hopes” for other Grand Slams and the Olympics, but at two of the last three majors he’s lost to the front-runners of the next generation in Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Both should now have the belief they can beat Djokovic over five sets.

Can Sinner be 'unstoppable'?

Jannik Sinner produced one of the great Grand Slam runs in Melbourne.

For a first-time Grand Slam winner, his journey to the final was as emphatic as it gets, and he then showed remarkable poise and calm to “dance in the pressure storm” and overcome Medvedev in five sets.

Sinner has been touted as a potential major champion for a while, but over the last six months his form has really ramped up to another level.

Watch: Top 5 points from Sinner and Medvedev's Australian Open final epic

He was a deserving champion at the Australian Open and soon after lifting the trophy was already talking about the need to “work even harder” to ensure further success comes his way.

He was also being talked up as a leading force for years to come by Eurosport commentator Nick Kyrgios.

"I think we’re gonna see him win plenty more Slams in the next couple of years. Now he’s got this one, he’s just going to be unstoppable.”

Is there now a ‘Big Four’?

A new group has formed at the top of the ATP rankings after the Australian Open.

The top four of Djokovic, Alcaraz, Medvedev and Sinner are separated by only 1,545 points. It’s then a 3,260-point gap from fourth-placed Sinner to Andrey Rublev in fifth.

Australian Open final highlights: Sinner stuns Medvedev in comeback to win first Grand Slam

It seems a fair reflection of the state of play right now.

Between them, Djokovic, Alcaraz, Medvedev and Sinner have won almost all of the big titles since the start of 2023. It’s hard to see that changing this season unless Alexander Zverev can continue the form he showed in Melbourne or Rublev, Rune or Stefanos Tsitsipas can find a few more gears.

Will Alcaraz make any changes?

In truth it’s difficult to know exactly what to take from Carlos Alcaraz’s quarter-final run in Melbourne.

Eurosport expert Justine Henin said he still has a “lot to learn” after the defeat to Alexander Zverev, and perhaps that is the biggest takeaway: that he is already a huge talent with two Grand Slam titles won and time spent as world No. 1, and this is perhaps only the beginning.

He was dazzlingly good in the third and fourth rounds at the Australian Open before falling flat against Zverev.

There was debate after the result over whether Alcaraz can be too much of a “showman” and lacks some “discipline”. The world No. 2 was critical of his own display, but loves playing with a smile on his face and going for spectacular crowd-thrilling shots, so that likely won't be changing.

Perhaps though there might be some small adjustments as he returns home and works with coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, who was not in Melbourne after having surgery.

What’s ahead for Murray and fellow veterans?

If there is a chance that Andy Murray is going to keep playing beyond this year, he will likely need to have some positive results that encourage him to do so.

In Australia the results were not there as he lost in the first round in Brisbane and then produced a flat display in defeat to Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the second round of the Australian Open.

Murray suggested he might not be back in Melbourne, and unless there’s an improvement in form over the next few months then the chances of a summer farewell surely increase.

'I don't think we'll see him here again' - Henman expects Murray 'soul-searching' after exit

He might not be the only one stepping away either, with Gael Monfils and Richard Gasquet both seemingly nearing the end of their careers. A home Olympics in Paris could be seen as a perfect time for them to bow out.

Rafael Nadal’s future also remains uncertain after he didn’t play in Melbourne due to injury. He is returning next month in Doha, but will he continue beyond the summer?

Will Sabalenka soar after Melbourne win?

Aryna Sabalenka was simply awesome at the Australian Open.

After blazing through the first week, more resistance might have been expected in week two, but Sabalenka was just far too good and far too powerful for Barbara Krejcikova, Coco Gauff, and Qinwen Zheng.

Australian Open final highlights: Sabalenka is champion again after triumph over Zheng

Her power hitting is a significant level above what most on the WTA Tour can offer, reminiscent of the way a peak Serena Williams blasted through opponents.

If Sabalenka continues to play the way she did in Melbourne then a Serena-like season could be in the offing.

How will Swiatek, Rybakina, Pegula respond?

While Sabalenka stormed through the field in Melbourne, a raft of upsets blew the other side of the draw wide open.

World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, world No. 3 Elena Rybakina, and world No. 5 Jessica Pegula all suffered surprise early exits that raise questions over what’s ahead.

Swiatek’s loss was particularly puzzling as she had looked so good at the United Cup to start the season, but struggled to replicate that form at the Australian Open.

'It'd be surprising if she didn't win at least 2, 3, 4 more' - McEnroe on Sabalenka

Rybakina was one of the favourites after making last year’s final but fell in an epic second-round clash, while Pegula was also expected to go far but also lost in the second round in just 70 minutes.

Both have plenty of ground to make up in the rankings on Swiatek, Sabalenka and Coco Gauff.

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Is this just the start for Qinwen?

“Qinwen, you are just starting an incredible journey,” was Chris Evert’s message to Qinwen Zheng after she was beaten in the Australian Open final.

The 21-year-old is seen as one of the brightest young talents in the women’s game and is now up into the top 10 for the first time in her career.

It’s hard to know exactly how much of a stride forward she took in Melbourne as she reached the final without facing a single top-50 player. But after being named the WTA’s Most Improved Player in 2023, this was clearly another big move in the right direction for Zheng.

The challenge now will be improving her record against top-10 players – she has won just three of her last 11 match-ups – and delivering at the biggest tournaments on a consistent basis.

Will Raducanu and Osaka build on positivity?

For two players who won just one match between them at the Australian Open, Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka left with plenty of positive vibes.

Raducanu suffers painful defeat to Wang in second round - Australian Open highlights

For Raducanu, the biggest positive was that she got through her second-round match with Wang Yafan feeling good about her body, which has caused her some issues since her 2021 US Open win.

Osaka showed encouraging signs as she lost a tricky first-round match to Caroline Garcia – and was backed afterwards by Tim Henman to soon be a “threat” at Grand Slams again.

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Both Raducanu and Osaka will return to action at the Abu Dhabi Open after taking wild cards for the WTA 500 tournament.

When will Kyrgios return?

Nick Kyrgios was superb on Eurosport commentary at the Australian Open, but the wait goes on to find out when the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up will return to the court.

Kyrgios, 28, said during the tournament that he is as "hungry as ever" to return, while dismissing retirement suggestions as "absolute nonsense".

Kyrgios has played just one match since the start of 2023 due to injuries, but some kind words from Sinner after the final might have added fuel to his comeback.