Australian Open Day 1 order of play: How to watch, live stream big matches including Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka and Emma Raducanu in Melbourne
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By Ben Grounds
Published 16/01/2026 at 10:21 GMT
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The Australian Open starts in earnest on Sunday, with the Grand Slam live on TNT Sports and discovery+. Aryna Sabalenka, Jasmine Paolini and Emma Raducanu take to the stage on the women's side of the draw, while Carlos Alcaraz headlines the night session as he faces home favourite Adam Walton in the first round on Rod Laver Arena, with Alexander Zverev also in action against Gabriel Diallo.
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When are the star names taking to the court on the first day in the first round of the 2026 Australian Open on Sunday?
Carlos Alcaraz enters Melbourne still searching for his breakthrough run at the tournament, having never progressed beyond the quarter-finals.
The world No. 1 can expect a partisan atmosphere as he starts against Australian Adam Walton, and finds himself in a section of the draw notably light on elite opposition, with 14th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina the highest-ranked player standing between him and the last eight.
Day 1 also sees the return of Emma Raducanu as she begins the year's opening Grand Slam as Britain's leading woman and, on paper at least, with a forgiving introduction.
The 23-year-old, recently upset at the Hobart International by world No. 204 Taylah Preston, opens against Thailand's Mananchaya Sawangkaew, a debutant in the Australian Open main draw.
Yet any comfort may be fleeting. Raducanu's quarter of the draw points towards a third-round meeting with world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, whose own campaign starts against French wild card Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah on Sunday.
Ahead of the tournament - live on TNT Sports and on-demand on discovery+ - here is a run-through of the order of play for the first day of action in Melbourne.
How to watch and stream the 2026 Australian Open?
You can watch all the action from the 2026 Australian Open live in the UK on TNT Sports and on-demand on discovery+.
As well as all the live coverage from Melbourne, there will be expert analysis from on-site and in the studio.
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When is Carlos Alcaraz playing?
Alcaraz meets home favourite Walton first up, with their start dependent on the length of Sabalenka's match with Rakotomanga Rajaonah at the start of the night session, from 8am UK time.
The Spaniard has been handed a seemingly straightforward route to the quarter-finals, but he will want to make a statement in his opening match against a man who will be backed by a vocal home crowd.
The highest-ranked player on Alcaraz's side of the draw is 14th seed Davidovich Fokina, while holder Jannik Sinner - who faces Hugo Gaston first up - may only meet 15th seed Karen Khachanov in round four.
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When are Sabalenka, Raducanu and Zverev playing?
Rod Laver Arena will be the backdrop for world No. 1 Sabalenka's first-round match with Rakotomanga Rajaonah.
The encounter is scheduled to take place at 8am UK time and will be followed by Alcaraz's contest with Walton.
Third seed Alexander Zverev faces Canada's Gabriel Diallo in the second match of the day session on Rod Laver Arena, following the conclusion of Jasmine Paolini's curtain-raiser against the qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
Zverev shares his section of the draw with Cameron Norrie, who arrives in Melbourne as Britain's sole seeded male player following Jack Draper's injury withdrawal. The 26th seed opens against France's Benjamin Bonzi and could meet Zverev in the third round.
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As for Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion will be involved in the final match on Margaret Court Arena against Sawangkaew, following the conclusion of Alexander Bublik v Jenson Brooksby, so the likelihood is that UK fans will be awake to see the contest from approximately 10am.
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Australian Open order of play, singles - Sunday, January 18
Rod Laver Arena (from 12.30am UK time)
- Aliaksandra Sasnovich v Jasmine Paolini
- Alexander Zverev v Gabriel Diallo
- Aryna Sabalenka v Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah (from 8am UK time)
- Carlos Alcaraz v Adam Walton
Margaret Court Arena (from 12.30am UK time)
- Maria Sakkari v Leolia Jeanjean
- Francisco Cerundolo v Zhizhen Zhang
- Alexander Bublik v Jenson Brooksby (from 8am UK time)
- Mananchaya Sawangkaew v Emma Raducanu
You can find the information on all the first-round matches taking place on Day 1 here.
Stream every match of the 2026 Australian Open live and on-demand on discovery+.
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