LEAKED: JANNIK SINNER’S SECRET TRAINING GOALS FOR THE 2026 SEASON REVEALED BY ITALIAN TENNIS LEGENDS
Jannik Sinner targets a 2026 Calendar Grand Slam sweep. Discover why Adriano Panatta believes Sinner is more solid than Carlos Alcaraz.
Italian tennis legend Adriano Panatta thinks Jannik Sinner has his sights set on something huge: a calendar Grand Slam in 2026.
Right now, Sinner’s got four Grand Slam trophies to his name—he won the Australian Open in both 2024 and 2025, the US Open in 2024, and Wimbledon in 2025.
He actually made it to every Grand Slam final in 2025, but Carlos Alcaraz got the better of him at the French Open and the US Open.
Only one man has ever pulled off the calendar Grand Slam in the Open Era: Rod Laver, way back in 1969. Novak Djokovic almost did it in 2021, but he lost in the US Open final after sweeping the first three majors.
Panatta, talking to Sky Sport Italy, said Sinner’s choice to stick with coach Darren Cahill shows how serious he is about chasing this dream. “Honestly, I think Jannik has a secret goal—the calendar Grand Slam,” Panatta said. “Deciding to keep working with Cahill until 2026 tells you he’s actually thinking about it.”
He went on, “There’s a reason Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic never made it happen. There were just too many strong rivals, like Andy Murray. Now, really, there are just two at the top, so the odds have doubled.”
Panatta thinks Sinner’s got an edge over Alcaraz here. “Sinner is a more solid, consistent player. Alcaraz is unstoppable sometimes, but it comes in bursts. Of course, all of this assumes everyone stays healthy—injuries can change everything.”
He also pointed out that Sinner played about three months less this year. “Next season, he’ll have four more Masters 1000s to deal with. Planning your schedule is almost as important as the training itself.”
Sinner wrapped up 2025 ranked No. 2 in the world, just behind Alcaraz, and finished the year by defending his ATP Finals title in Turin.
He’ll take on six-time major winner Alcaraz in an exhibition match in Incheon, South Korea, on January 10—just eight days before the Australian Open main draw kicks off.
THE EIGHT-YEAR GAP: SVITOLINA REACHES FIRST WTA 1000 FINAL SINCE 2018 IN DUBAI
Svitolina stuns Gauff! Discover how she reached the Dubai final to face Pegula, plus Alcaraz's 11-0 streak and Venus' return.
Elina Svitolina stunned world number four Coco Gauff to earn a spot in the Dubai Tennis Championships final, where she’ll face Jessica Pegula.
Pegula got there first, clawing her way back after a rough start against Amanda Anisimova. She dropped the first set badly and even lost her serve early in the second, but still pulled off a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 win.
Gauff, just 21, almost set up an all-American final, but Svitolina refused to fold. The match? Epic. Svitolina took it 6-4, 6-7 (13-15), 6-4 after more than three hours on court. She let four match points slip in a wild second-set tiebreak, but didn’t let that break her. She powered through the decider, and now she’s back in the Dubai final for the first time since she won the title back-to-back in 2017 and 2018.
“I was playing like there’s no tomorrow, just giving it everything,” Svitolina said afterwards.
Over in the men’s Qatar Open, world number one Carlos Alcaraz kept his perfect 2026 record alive. He beat Andrey Rublev 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 to reach the final. Alcaraz, just 22, already grabbed the Australian Open this season and became the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam. He’s won all 11 matches he’s played this year.
“I know what I can do every time I step on the court,” Alcaraz said.
He’ll face Arthur Fils from France in the final. Fils beat Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic, who’d knocked out world number two Jannik Sinner earlier in the week, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4).
And in some more big news, Venus Williams is heading back to Indian Wells. The seven-time Grand Slam champ, now 45, got a wildcard for both singles and doubles.
“It’s great to be heading back to Indian Wells and returning home to California,” Williams said in a statement.
9-0 STREAK: ANALYZING CARLOS ALCARAZ’S PERFECT START TO THE 2026 TENNIS SEASON
Alcaraz hits 9-0: Discover why Valentin Royer warned Alcaraz and Sinner after their 2026 clash and the latest ATP rankings.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner just got a playful warning from their ATP rival, Valentin Royer.
Alcaraz, with seven Grand Slam titles, and Sinner, who has four, have completely owned men’s tennis for the last couple of years. They’ve split the last nine majors; each grabbed four ATP Masters 1000 trophies; and keep swapping the No. 1 spot in the ATP Rankings.
No one else has really kept up. Novak Djokovic is still hanging around, but the rest of the guys, like Alexander Zverev, Lorenzo Musetti, Alex de Minaur, Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Ben Shelton, are all chasing from behind.
Alcaraz is rolling right now. He’s unbeaten in 2026 so far, standing at 9-0. After winning his first Australian Open title, he followed up with wins over Arthur Rinderknech and Royer.
After Alcaraz beat Royer 6-2, 7-5, the two shared a light moment at the net. Royer, currently world No. 60, told Alcaraz, “I’ll come for you and Jannik, don’t worry. Some day.” Alcaraz laughed and said, “I will wait for you, man.”
Royer actually had a shot in the second set. He broke Alcaraz’s serve early and was up 5-3, serving for the set, but Alcaraz broke back, held serve, and broke again to close out the match.
Asked if he was nervous, Alcaraz admitted, “Honestly, I had to be ready for anything. There were moments when I thought about a third set; I’m not going to lie. But that was just a small part of my mind. Mostly, I was focused on finding solutions, figuring out how to get back on track.
“I’m really happy I found my rhythm again and played good tennis. Sometimes it just comes down to one point. Closing out a set or a match isn’t always easy. I just had to stay in it, and I’m glad I turned it around and got the win in straight sets.”
Next, he faces seventh seed Karen Khachanov in the quarterfinals. If he gets through, he’ll meet either Andrey Rublev or Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semis. Sinner is the likely opponent waiting in the final.
“Everybody expects us to play every final, every tournament, but that’s not easy. There are a lot of players out here who want to beat us,” Alcaraz said about a possible final against Sinner.