It’s the old dilemma of “would you rather?” – the choice between two difficult hypotheticals – which Carlos Alcaraz thought he had the answer for upon arriving in Australia, only for a curve ball to be thrown his way.
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The top seed comes to Melbourne Park for Australian Open 2026 on the verge of history as he bids to complete the career Grand Slam this fortnight, a mission which begins on Sunday night against Australia’s Adam Walton.
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At the end of last year, having finished as year-end No.1 for the second time, the Spaniard was posed with his first hypothetical choice – a maiden Australian Open trophy, or two of the other major titles in 2026.
His immediate ambition was clear, and the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup won out.
On the eve of his fifth campaign at Melbourne Park, where his best result remains quarterfinal appearances in each of the past two years, the six-time major champion was handed a second hypothetical choice: an Australian Open title in 2026, or all of the other three Slams.
“Well, that’s a good one,” Alcaraz grinned.
“I don’t know. I don’t know which one I would choose. Obviously completing the career Grand Slam is something amazing to do, to be able to be the youngest that has done it before, you know, is even better.
“But three [is] three. Three Grand Slams are three Grand Slams. So I don’t know. It is a question that I got to think about it, not just a quick answer.”
Time is on the 22-year-old’s side. While the latest “would you rather?” left him stumped, he’s less likely to be caught off-guard in Sunday’s first tour-level hit-out of the new season.
Alcaraz – who played an exhibition against Jannik Sinner in Seoul and another against Alex de Minaur at RLA – has a fair idea what his 26-year-old Queensland opponent has in store. He claimed their only prior meeting on grass at Queen’s Club last year en route to the title.
Born and raised in Home Hill in North Queensland, Walton achieved his best ranking of world No.74 three months ago following a season that included a fourth round at Indian Wells and his first ATP semifinal in Los Cabos.
