While top Australian players made headlines in impressive Australian Open 2026 main-draw campaigns, several compatriots also made eye-turning progress in adjacent events staged at their home Grand Slam.
The local success story was led by Canberra’s Tommy Camus, who triumphed in the Asia-Pacific Elite 14/u boys’ singles tournament. The 14-year-old defeated top seed Siyun Kim 6-1 6-4 in the final to finish his tournament on a high note. Earlier, Camus had fallen to South Korea’s Kim in the group stage.
Camus became Australia’s third champion from the five editions staged of the Australian Open Asia-Pacific Elite 14/u tournament, joining Emilie Chen (2024) and Ethan Domingo (2025) as winners.
Musemma Cilek, a 14-year-old from Melbourne, almost ensured an Australian clean sweep after finishing runner-up in the girls’ singles final in a tight three-set battle to India’s Jensi Kanabar.
Showcasing inclusive pathways
Across the blind, intellectual disability, and deaf tournaments, 33 competitors from 19 different countries competed on the final three days of Australian Open 2026 at Melbourne Park.
The Blind and Low Vision Showdown became the first Blind and Low Vision invitational event to be added to a Grand Slam’s official tournament program.
The invitational event saw 16 of the top Blind and Low Vision players compete in the inaugural Team Australia v Team World competition. Team Australia, consisting of Isaiah Muller, Tess Whelan, Ethan Cook, Courtney Webeck, Michael Leigh, Caroline Lane, Ross Patterson, and Grace Hobbs, defeated Team World to win the title.
Archie Graham and Kelly Wren were among the champions at the AO26 Intellectual Disability Tennis Slam.
For the fourth-straight year, Graham won both the singles and doubles titles at the event.
Meanwhile, Wren and British partner Anna McBride overturned their women's doubles runners-up finish from last year to prevail at AO 2026. The pair won all three of their matches, including a top-of-the-table match against Eva Blanc and Hanne Lavreysen, to win the championship.
In the largest LGBTQIA+ tennis tournament on the calendar, more than 200 players gathered from around the world for the second AO Glam Slam. Fifteen Australians won titles across 19 events during the four-day period.
Legends thrive
In other competitions, Team Australia claimed back-to-back trophies in the AO Legends Cup presented by Marriott Bonvoy.
The host nation, comprising Pat Rafter, Lleyton Hewitt, Mark Philippoussis, Sam Stosur, Alicia Molik, and Casey Dellacqua, defeated Team World in six of the nine matches to add to their AO 2025 victory.
Million dollar man
The most unexpected Australian champion at Melbourne Park arguably came in the form of New South Wales amateur Jordan Smith, who won $1 million as part of the AO 1 Point Slam driven by Kia in Opening Week presented by Herald Sun.
Representing Castle Hill Tennis Club in Sydney’s northwest, Smith defeated Jannik Sinner, Amanda Anisimova and Joanna Garland, en route to the life-changing grand prize. He also secured a $50,000 tennis grant for his local club.
Queensland state champion Alec Reverente won a brand-new Kia EV3, defeating Smith in a separate battle between the last two remaining amateurs in the draw.