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Danielle Collins and Emma Raducanu know what it takes to play on the big stage, but only one of them will be in action at the 2026 Australian Open. The entry list for the season's first Grand Slam, scheduled to be held in January, was released recently and did not feature former finalist Collins' name.
Raducanu, meanwhile, will be back within seeded company as she finds herself ranked high enough to secure a billing. Besides, there are plenty of other interesting storylines to follow at the tournament. Here, we take a look at five observtaions worth focusing on from the 2026 Australian Open entry list:
Danielle Collins not on Australian Open entry list
Danielle Collins was due to retire at the end of the 2025 tennis season, but chose to extend her time on Tour. From the looks of it though, fans might have to wait a little longer to see back on court.
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The American's name is missing from the entry list for 2026's first Grand Slam, the Australian Open. With the tournament being the first major stop for top players in the calendar year, her absence has cast doubt over her plans for next season. Traditionally, Collins has played well Down Under, having made a final and a semifinal at the tournament.
Notably, Collins had made headlines at the last edition of the Australian Open. She has a stand-off with fans after criticizing them from being hostile and disrespectful to non-Australian players. She sarcastically blew kisses at the crowd as they booed her after the contest against home hope Destanee Aiava.
Emma Raducanu to be seeded
Emma Raducanu enjoyed a rather successful 2025 season, showing flashes of her best tennis. She reached the fourth of at Wimbledon and the semifinals in DC, besides staging deep runs at other big events.
The Briton ended the year ranked No. 29 — her best standing in the list since her breakthrough year in 2021. Thanks to that, she will be seeded at the Australian Open. The top-32 players on the entry list are awarded seeding, which ensures that they do not run into a fellow high-ranked opponent in the opening two rounds.
Raducanu, who has had her fair share of rough draws, will be keen on making the best of her position. Her best performance at the Australian Open came this year, when she beat Ekaterina Alexandrova and Amanda Anisimova to make the third round. She lost to Iga Swiatek in the last-32 and will be looking to improve on that showing heading into 2026.
Karolina Pliskova, Zhang Zhizhen return
Quite a few players are also set to return to action after being sidelines due to injuries, at the 2026 Australian Open. Leading the players who have used a protected ranking to enter the list are former World No. 1 Karolina Pliskova and former Chinese No. 1 Zhang Zhizhen.
Pliskova, who is a former Australian Open semifinalist, has been largely inactive since the 2024 US Open. She had sustained an ankle injury at the time. She did return to action briefly in September 2025 but decided to take more time to let her body recover after just two tournaments.
Zhizhen, too was sidelines from tennis after shoulder injury early this year. He returned to action during the Asian swing, but played only four matches before calling time on the season. Besides the two, the likes of Junchen Shang, Emil Ruusuvuori, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Wang Yafan and Mananchaya Sawangkaew will also used protected rankings to enter the main draw.
32 Americans make Australian Open direct entry list
Americans have come to dominate both the WTA and ATP rankings, which reflects in the entry list as well. As many as 16 American men and women each have secured direct entry into the singles main draws, the highest from any country by some distance.
Leading the men's field for the US would be Taylor Fritz and fellow top-10 player Ben Shleton. In women, meanwhile, there are four Americans inside the top-10 itself. Madison Keys is also the defending champion.
Novak Djokovic to avoid Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz until semifinals
Novak Djokovic will continue his pursuit of the elusive 25th Grand Slam title. Melbourne Park has been his most successful venue for the Serb, who has lifted 10 trophies Down Under.
It is then understandable as to why many would view it as one of his best shots at getting to the 25th Grand Slam trophy. Luckily for him, his ranking of No. 4 would ensure that he does not run into either Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz before the semifinals.
Notably, Djokovic had beaten Alcaraz in the last edition of the tournament. He won their quarterfinal encounter in four keenly contested sets, but was forced to pull out from his semifinal due to injury. The last time that Djokovic won a Slam was the 2023 US Open.
