Australian Open 2026 preview and where to watch

The Australian Open returns to Melbourne, Australia for its 2026 edition, played from 18 Jan – 1 Feb on Hard.

What's at stake

As one of the four Grand Slams, this is the highest-paying tournament of the season and the largest ranking-points haul on tour: 2,000 points to the singles winners. The two-week, best-of-five (men) format means depth and durability matter as much as form.

The 2026 edition of the Australian Open has wrapped. The recap, full results and dates for the 2027 edition are below.

The conditions

Hard court is the global default — medium-paced, true-bouncing, and tactically neutral. Form, fitness and serve quality usually decide who goes deep here, more than surface preference.

Hard-court specialists and the very top seeds tend to dominate events of this kind. The week’s pace and bounce will favour those who arrive with rhythm — watch the warm-up events on the same surface for an early read on form.

How to follow it

The full schedule, daily order of play and broadcaster list are below. Switch country in the header to see the rightsholder showing the Australian Open where you live, and use the daily order-of-play page on match days to track start times in your local timezone.

Frequently asked

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