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MELBOURNE, Australia – Jannik Sinner and Madison Keys will attempt to defend their Australian Open titles when the first Grand Slam of the 2026 tennis season begins. The tournament starts on Sunday in Australia (Saturday night in the U.S.), with first-round matches and concludes on Feb. 1.

ESPN and its family of networks will have full television coverage of the Australian Open.

If you’ve cut the cord, several streaming services will broadcast the tournament. You can watch on Fubo (free trial), DIRECTV (free trial), Sling (promotional offers as low as $4.99) and the ESPN streaming app.

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Sinner will try to pursue his third consecutive Australian Open title and build off a spectacular 2025 season that also included a Wimbledon championship. As for Keys, she will look for her second Grand Slam title.

Neither Sinner nor Keys head into this tournament ranked as the No. 1 player in the world.

A look at the men’s singles field

Sinner comes into this year’s Australian Open trying for his third championship in a row. A year ago, he defeated Alexander Zverev in straight sets in the championship match.

However, Sinner is not the top seed in this year’s field. That belongs to Spanish superstar Carlos Alcaraz.

While Sinner won the Australian Open and Wimbledon last year, Alcaraz won the other two Grand Slams, earning victories in the French Open and the US Open.

Other men’s singles contenders

Zverev, who was the runner-up last year to Sinner, is the third seed in the field, followed by Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti to round out the top five.

Australian Alex de Minaur is the sixth seed. He reached the quarterfinals last year before losing to Sinner in three sets.

Another name to watch will be Ben Shelton. He is the top-seeded American in the men’s field at No. 8, one spot ahead of Taylor Fritz. Shelton lost to Sinner in the semifinals last year and is still chasing his first Grand Slam championship.

Watch the 2026 Australian Open for free on Fubo

A look at the women’s singles field

Keys faces an uphill climb to defend her 2025 Australian Open championship. The player Keys beat in last year’s final, Aryna Sabalenka, enters this year’s tournament as the No. 1 seed.

Sabalenka was the back-to-back champion in 2023 and 2024 before she lost to Keys in three sets in the final.

The only other former champion among the seeded players is Naomi Osaka. A champion in 2019 and 2021, Osaka enters this year’s field as the No. 16 seed.

Other women’s singles contenders

No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek and No. 3 seed Coco Gauff each won Grand Slam tournaments in 2025, with Gauff winning her first French Open and Swiatek claiming Wimbledon for the first time.

If Swiatek wins, she will be the 11th women’s tennis player in history to achieve the career Grand Slam. The last player to win the career Grand Slam was Maria Sharapova when she won the 2012 French Open.

Gauff is trying for her third Grand Slam title. The American superstar reached the semifinal in the 2024 Australian Open but lost to Sabalenka in straight sets.

Rounding out the top five in the women’s field are American Amanda Anisimova at No. 4 and Kazakhstan native Elena Rybakina at No. 5.

Watch the 2026 Australian Open for free on DIRECTV

Daily Australian Open schedule

Individual court streams will be availabe on the ESPN streaming app when the tournament starts, according to ESPN.com. Whip-around coverage for all rounds will air on ESPN2 (and ESPN for the semifinals and finals).

Day matches will be presented on ESPN networks in primetime (Eastern), and local night session matches will begin at 3 a.m. Eastern.

Find the brackets for the men’s draw and women’s draw.

Who is announcing the 2026 Australian Open?

The list of play-by-play commentators for the ESPN broadcasts includes Chris Fowler, Chris McKendry, Patrick McEnroe, Jason Goodall and Mike Monaco. Also on the call will be multiple match and studio analysts including John McEnroe, Chris Evert and Caroline Wozniacki.

What are the latest odds for the 2026 Australian Open?

Men’s singles top five favorites: Jannik Sinner (-125), Carlos Alcaraz (+170), Novak Djokovic (+1500), Daniil Medvedev (+3000), Alexander Zverev (+3000).

Women’s singles top five favorites: Aryna Sabalenka (+185), Iga Swiatek (+500), Elena Rybakina (+800), Coco Gauff (+1000), Amanda Anisimova (+100).

Odds courtesy of DraftKings

Check out more information on how to watch the 2026 Australian Open on TV and streaming services:

What: 2026 Australian Open

When: Sunday, Jan. 18 - Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026

Where: Rod Laver Arena and Melbourne Park | Melbourne, Australia

Channel: The ESPN family of networks and ESPN streaming

Best streaming options: Fubo (free trial), DIRECTV (free trial), Sling (promotional offers as low as $4.99) and the ESPN streaming app.

About Fubo

Fubo, which offers a free trial, has three main packages: Pro costs $79.99/month; Elite is $89.99; Premier is priced at $99.99. Cancel before the free trial ends to avoid being charged. Fubo includes access to more than 185 sports, entertainment and news channels. You can record games, TV shows, movies and more.

About DIRECTV

DIRECTV, which also gives customers a free trial, offers four packages if you continue with the service after your trial ends: Entertainment for $69.99; Choice for $84.99; Ultimate for $109.99; and premier for $159.99. Choice offers the most channels for sports enthusiasts.

About Sling

Sling TV users can get a Day Pass for $4.99; Weekend Pass for $9.99; Week Pass for $14.99; Monthly Pass for $45.99 (and get half off your first month); and Season Pass for $199.99 for 5 months, then $45.99 per month thereafter. You can also subscribe to either the Blue package or the Orange package depending on your viewing preferences. Sling Blue allows up to three streams at a time and Sling Orange allows one stream at a time.

About ESPN

ESPN now offers an Unlimited Plan for $29.99 per month (or $299.99 for entire year) and a Select Plan for $11.99 per month (or $119.99 for entire year), which replicates its previous coverage of select games and broadcasts on ESPN Plus.

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