I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I’ll be little more than a casual tennis fan, despite my history with the sport as a Flushing Meadow resident and a one-time consultant for The Tennis Channel. The more years of distance I develop from both of those points in my life the less passionate I get, and my backhand was never developed even when I had the capacity to have one.
But I do get a little bit more interested when the Grand Slams come around, and I’ve tended to have been a lot more passionate about the Australian Open than most. For one thing, for years it was largely the most ignored of the four majors, time zone differences being what they are. But as the appetite grew and the 24-hour opportunities of viewership across multiple devices expanded the AO was more opportunistically scheduled to at least factor in U.S. prime time, and on the West Coast that would include as early as the dinner hour. And to me there was something comforting about seeing familiar people sweat in summer-like daytime conditions even if it was pitch black and relatively chilly here. It reminded me that the hot summer nights of Flushing weren’t all that far off or far away.
Yet somehow this year I’m just simply not as engaged or as excited as I’ve been even in recent years, which is probably why this musing has been delayed until now, where I’m just beginning to settle down for the men’s semifinals which at least offer a couple of very interesting matchups. Chalk fully advanced to this point: top seed Carlos Alcaraz and 3 seed Alexander Zverev will have the first five-hour window, which top-tier best-of-five men’s matchups often fill. And in the nightcap (and with a 12:30 am pacific scheduled start time, we REALLY mean night) 2 seed Jannik Sinner will try again to thwart an attempt at history from a 4 seed I’m far more familiar with. And as FOX NEWS’ Paulina Dejac observed yesterday, he’s got more than a small chip on his shoulder:
Novak Djokovic sparred with a reporter after his Australian Open win that sent him into the semifinals following the journalist’s suggestion that the 24-time Grand Slam champion has spent his career “chasing” his rivals.
Djokovic, 38, defeated fifth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinals on Wednesday to set up a semifinal matchup against two-time winner…Sinner. Despite owning a record 24 Grand Slam titles, including a record 10 at the Australian Open, Djokovic was asked during his post-match press conference how it felt to be “chasing” Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal early in his career and now “chasing” Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in the latter stages.
“I’m chasing Jannik and Carlos? In which sense?” he interrupted. “So I’m always the chaser and never being chased?” The reporter then conceded, “In the meantime, you won 24 Grand Slams,” to which Djokovic responded with a smile, “Thanks, it’s worth saying that sometimes. Right?”
Nothing is more relatable to me these days than a seasoned veteran looking for one more crack at glory while trying to fend off the inevitable. A close second would be following an American on their journey, but that possibility faded away in the wee small hours of yesterday’s morning, as THE ATHLETIC’s Michael Bailey observed as dawn drew nigh:
American Jessica Pegula was knocked out of the women’s singles semifinals at the Australian Open 2026 today. Pegula (6), the last U.S. singles hope in Melbourne, was eliminated by Elena Rybakina (5) on Rod Laver Arena 6-3, 7-6(7). Pegula had hoped she would be in the mix for the women’s singles title in Melbourne on Saturday. It wasn’t meant to be and she plans to work on the reasons wh(y).
Just as interesting from her media conference though, was her view on Elena Rybakina’s performance tonight — and the fifth seed’s chances of upsetting Aryna Sabalenka in the final …“She’s always just tough. She’s so chill, she doesn’t really give you anything, and that’s hard sometimes. You’re not really sure if she’s upset or excited … in today’s game, that goes a long way. You don’t have a lot of energy to play off. “How she always keeps you guessing with the serve is definitely one of her strengths. But she’s a good returner. The combination makes her frustrating to play against. “I mean, we’ve already seen her beat Aryna before somewhat recently, and I think she’s one of the best players in the world when she’s healthy and confident. Right now it seems like she is.”
I know there are plenty of you who are much more aware of the talents of Rybakina and Sabalenka; they did indeed stage a compelling women’s finals in Melbourne three years ago. But to a casual fan, surnames this difficult to spell and pronounce are a barrier to entry. That’s neither a racist statement nor an excuse; it’s a fact of life that tennis executives have conceded for years. And that had been exacerbated earlier this week with perhaps the biggest American draw of all, as ESSENTIALLY SPORTS’ Supriyo Sarkar observed:
Tennis thrives on raw emotion, and Coco Gauff’s post-match racket smash captured that truth after her swift quarterfinal loss at the Australian Open. Filmed in a quiet area, the moment reignited debate over intrusive cameras and shrinking player privacy. While some argue everything is fair game, the WTA struck a different tone, publicly backing players and defending their right to off-court space.
Fans who sought to be thrilled by Gauff’s and Pegula’s runs in the AO’s earlier rounds could seem to relate more than ever to those kinds of frustrations, a point YAHOO! SPORTS’ Aaditya Krishnamurthy drove home at its midway point:
American tennis fans are expressing growing frustration with ESPN’s new streaming model for the 2026 Australian Open, calling the service confusing and overly complicated.
ESPN’s shift to a tiered subscription system has split tournament coverage across different pay levels, leaving many unsure where to find key matches. The changes come as ESPN transitions to a direct-to-consumer strategy, reshaping how fans access live sports content. As play continues in Melbourne, fans across the United States have voiced concern online about paying extra to watch marquee matchups that were previously included in standard ESPN packages.
Those earlier rounds couldn’t seem to find their way onto the ESPN mothership at all even in overnight hours, and bringing it into the walled garden of ESPN Unlimited meant less access to the kinds of expanded coverage and channels digital cable and satellite providers have offered in the past. And given the crossroads the sport is at as it attempts to make true household names of this new generation of stars, making it harder for your gold card viewers to find it at all is hardly a best practice. Respectfully, the fact that said mothership devoted those precious overnight hours to encore runs of Sportscenter with Scott Van Pelt and NBA telecasts is hardly a ringing endorsement. We’ve seen nary a whisper of ratings news from any source so far, so I’m willing to wager an A$ that the quantitative verdict isn’t a good one, either.
I am looking forward to tonight with a bit more intensity than I have the prior ones during this fortnight; the Djokovic angle in pursuit of an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam title especially delicious. And it’s actually gonna air live on ESPN Uno, which to this migraine-addled insomniac is yet another welcome throwback. A rousing performance might actually get me to reconsider trying to learn a backhand. Even if it’s merely how to describe the compliment I’m bestowing upon ESPN for this year’s coverAOge.
Courage..