Australian Open: Carlos Alcaraz Progresses Past Yannick Hanfmann To Move Into...

Last Updated:January 21, 2026, 13:17 IST

The 22-year-old beat German Hanfmann in a hard-fought contest that ended 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-2 in favour of Alcaraz on Rod Laver Arena as the Spaniard moved into the third round.

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain plays a backhand return to Yannick Hanfmann of Germany during their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Six-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz faced a challenge from German journeyman Yannick Hanfmann on Wednesday before ultimately securing his place in the Australian Open third round.

The 22-year-old Spaniard overcame the tough match 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena, setting up a clash with either France’s Corentin Moutet or American student Michael Zheng.

Early on, Alcaraz struggled against the 34-year-old Hanfmann, who has never won a career title. “I knew he was going to play great. I mean, I know his level, I played him a few times already," said the world number one, aiming to become the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam of all four majors.

Melbourne Park’s hard courts have been challenging for Alcaraz, never advancing past the quarter-finals in his four trips to Australia. Last year, he lost at that stage to Novak Djokovic and previously to Alexander Zverev.

“To be honest, it was tougher than I thought at the beginning. I didn’t feel the ball that good. You know, the ball was coming as a bomb, forehand and backhand," he added.

“Really, really happy that I got through a really difficult first set and then I started to feel a little bit better on the court."

Hanfmann, who had never advanced past round two in 16 previous Grand Slam appearances, started well and even worked a break point on Alcaraz’s opening serve. Though saved initially, Hanfmann managed to break Alcaraz’s next service game due to a double fault by the top seed.

Alcaraz quickly regrouped with a powerful forehand to break back, leading to a tiebreak. The key moment came when Hanfmann netted a forehand on serve, giving Alcaraz a 5-4 advantage. The Spaniard then served to seal the marathon set, which lasted 78 minutes.

The reigning French Open and US Open champion found his rhythm in the second set, winning it in just 43 minutes. Hanfmann, exhausted, required a medical timeout for his left shoulder.

Despite his efforts, Hanfmann couldn’t keep up, and Alcaraz, who won a Tour-leading eight titles last season, broke serve to move 3-1 ahead and made no mistakes as he sprinted to the finish line.

(With Inputs From Agencies)

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