Australian Open: Alcaraz weathers Hanfmann challenge to stay on track for career Grand Slam
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz moved into the Australian Open third round with a 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-2 victory over Yannick Hanfmann, overcoming a tricky opening set.
Carlos Alcaraz, Australian Open 2026 | © Marcin Cholewinski/ZUMA Press Wirre/SIPA
Carlos Alcaraz continued his pursuit of history at Melbourne Park on Wednesday night, defeating German Yannick Hanfmann in straight sets to reach the round of 32 for the fourth time (7-6(4), 6-3, 6-2). While the scoreline suggests a routine outing, the top seed had to navigate a “tricky first set” before his superior baseline variety allowed him to pull away from the world No. 102.
Hanfmann put up a resilient fight in the opening hour, forcing a tiebreak after a high-quality display of serving and tactical aggression. The first set lasted 78 minutes. However, the Spaniard’s ability to find another gear in pressure moments proved decisive. Following the win, Alcaraz moves into a section of the draw where he will face Corentin Moutet.
As the tournament progresses, the focus remains on Alcaraz’s physical freshness and focus. Having arrived in Melbourne with minimal match play this month, he has displayed no signs of rust. As his camp suggests, the Spaniard is locked in on his goal, and “you simply do not want to be in his way” as he aims to complete his collection of all four major titles.
Despite the clinical scoreline, Carlos Alcaraz admitted that he is still in the process of calibrating his game to the fast Melbourne conditions. “Obviously, I still getting used to the conditions, getting used to playing better,” Alcaraz noted, acknowledging that Yannick Hanfmann’s aggressive, “bomb-like” pace prevented him from finding a comfortable baseline rhythm for much of the match.
While the Spaniard was satisfied with the result, he viewed the performance more as a developmental step than a finished product: “But just happy that I’m just improving every day after every match. So hopefully being better in the next round.”
Alcaraz : “Those comments with my team after the match helps me a lot”
The world No. 1 also offered a candid look into the psychological battle of competing at the highest level, explaining how “negative thoughts” can often distort a player’s self-assessment during a match. “I think when you are on court you cannot see the right thing sometimes… you’re stuck in the negative thoughts or negative things. You don’t see the global or the whole thing,” he revealed.
To counteract this on-court tunnel vision, Alcaraz relies heavily on the post-match debrief with his coaching staff – his first at a major since his high-profile split with Juan Carlos Ferrero – to gain a more objective perspective. “Those comments with my team after the match helps me a lot in the next round see the things more clear,” he explained, preparing for a anticipated third-round encounter with the unpredictable Corentin Moutet.
