Andy Roddick shares his thoughts on the state of tennis after the Australian Open

The 2026 Australian Open may be in the books, but there’s still a lot of tennis left to come this year.

It was a tournament to remember for both Elena Rybakina and Carlos Alcaraz, as each captured their first Australian Open titles with wins over Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic.

The men’s semifinals and both finals brought plenty of drama, with the tournament coming alive just when it needed to.

With the ATP and WTA players moving on from Australia, attention now shifts to what the rest of 2026 might hold for tennis.

Roddick backs tennis after a positive 2026 Australian Open

“Tennis is just winning right now. And it feels like I say it at the end of every Slam,” Roddick said.

“You are taking what Billie Jean King and Arthur Ashe started building, and the visions they had, and it grows and grows.

“It had its moment in the 80’s when [John] McEnroe sold more sneakers than Larry Bird for a while, and it ebbs and flows.

“Now it just feels like, on the backs of the previous generation, it’s just going!

“Nobody looks at it right now, and the way players dress, and thinks it’s that antiquated sport. It’s the sport that is stuck in the moment.”

The former US Open champion also mentioned how tennis has evolved without losing touch with its roots.

Roddick added: “We have all this new cool s—-, but we can still talk about how Carlos [Alcaraz] compares to Ivan Lendl. It’s fantastic.”

Tennis isn’t a static sport; it changes year after year. Over time, these adjustments seem to be doing more good than harm.

Three issues the sport still needs to address

How many times are we going to have this conversation before something actually changes? Players continue to share just how demanding the tour schedule is on their bodies, but the powers that be don’t seem ready to listen.

Several high-profile players, including Holger Rune, are out for an extended period, largely due to the congested schedule.

It’s about time that the ATP and WTA Tours put player welfare first and make a change. Players are also frustrated about the prize money they receive at Grand Slams.

They believe the four major tournaments aren’t sharing their revenues fairly with the players. In 2025, players sent a letter to the Grand Slams proposing a fairer revenue split, although it’s unclear how much progress has been made.

Fans have been glued to TV watching action at major tournaments like the Australian Open. But keeping them engaged throughout nearly year-round tennis is another challenge entirely.

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