Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz will play exhibition match in South Korea before Australian Open

In the coming days, the final duel between current World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz to end the year as World No. 1 will take place, even if they might not play against each other. And 2026 will start with a duel between the two, even before a potential final at the Australian Open, as a friendly match has been announced in South Korea.

It will be at the Hyundai Card Super Match in Incheon on January 10, ten days before the main draw of the Australian Open in Melbourne. If they don't play in the ATP Finals next week, it would be their first unofficial match since the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh in October, another exhibition tournament where Sinner thrashed Alcaraz.

In official matches, however, Alcaraz leads 10-5 the Italian, with their latest match being the US Open final in August 2025. Three of the four Grand Slam finals this season were between Sinner and Alcaraz, miles ahead of the competition as either World No. 1 or 2 (which means they can only face in finals).