At a Grand Slam, the margins between winning and losing can often be wafer thin.
In their fascinating and ever-evolving rivalry, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have been making clear adjustments to their games to stay one step ahead of each other - and the rest of the field.
MORE: All the scores from AO 2026
Alcaraz has been gradually tweaking his serve over the last couple of years.
The six-time Grand Slam champion has made a technical shift to make his serve more compact, which has helped increase his serve speed and accuracy.
“I think the serve is a shot that I’m doing a lot of changes, probably the last year. No other shot I've been changing anything or I've been putting so much attention on it,” he said following his first-round win over Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann.
“The serve is something that I really want to be better every year, in every tournament. I’m just putting constant work in on the serve,” he said in the lead-in to AO 2026.
Sinner, meanwhile, has been working on adding variety to his game after admitting he was “too predictable” following his 2025 US Open defeat to Alcaraz.
“We worked a lot on trying to make the transition to the net. The serve we change a couple of things. But all small details. When you are at the top level, the small details make the difference,” he said.
“But I would say the first matches, you know, you try to get used to the match feeling again, and then after you try to add something. Again, we see how things go. We see what conditions we play in.”
On the women’s side, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have also brought more variety to their games, both incorporating drop shots and serve-volleys in their second-round matches.
“In my first match I won like seven drop shot points, which I don’t think I’ve ever done. Today I won all of them that I did. It’s a good shot until I miss it,” Gauff said following her win over Olga Danilovic.
Gauff later reflected on how she feels a tactical shift from flat hitting to spin suits her game, taking inspiration from the men’s tour.
“I think continuing to be aggressive the way I thought I had to be – ultra-aggressive, hitting completely flat – I realised that’s probably not the game style for me,” she said.
“I still want to be aggressive, but just playing with a bit more spin, and kind of playing like how some of the guys do – taking more space and hitting heavier shots, not necessarily flatter shots.”
Sabalenka, likewise, threw in drop shots and serve-volleys in her victory over Bai Zhuoxuan.
Indeed, variety has been a key part of Sabalenka’s game plan for a number of years, and the world No.1 reflected on this transition following her title run at the Brisbane International earlier in January.
“[A] couple years ago, I finally found the touch game,” she said. “I figured something, and I kind of changed my game style.”
“Now I'm not only the aggressive player. I can play at the net, I can be in the defence, I can use my slice, I have a good touch.”
Sometimes gaining an edge comes in physical form.
Aussie No.1 and eighth seed at AO 2026, Alex de Minaur has made a concerted effort to gain a physical edge by hiring an extra fitness coach.
Orchestrating a brilliant fightback against Hamad Medjedovic on Wednesday night, de Minaur proved he was physically up for the challenge.
“That's the beauty of five-set matches. It's a hell of a long time to maintain that sort of level. I felt like I could keep my level for a little bit longer. That was the difference today,” he said.
Another player who’s had a change in personnel is Daniil Medvedev.
The 2021 US Open champion and former world No.1 parted ways with long-time coach, Gilles Cervara, replacing him with AO 2002 champion, Thomas Johansson and Australian, Rohan Goetzke.
Reflecting on this new partnership with Johansson and Goetzke, Medvedev is confident the pair can help get him back to the top of the men’s game and competing for the big titles.
“Loved working with Thomas and Rohan. We were first, let's call it, on a trial period until the end of the season. But I love working with them. I do think they love working with me, so we decided to continue,” he said.
“But they also could go into detail straightaway of what they saw that was missing at that moment because it was after US Open, and how maybe we can get back where I want to be.”
Medvedev also revealed the tactics they’ve been working on. “After talking, the practice process, we do try to add and implement some things, like I go a bit more to the net, I feel like my volley improved. So small things like this help me on the court,” he said.
In the highly competitive game of tennis, standing still is not an option and players must evolve to gain the advantage and stay competitive.