

5 Live Sport: All About... Australian Open
BBC Radio 5 Live
Russell Fuller, Gigi Salmon, Annabel Croft, Pat Cash and the rest of the BBC Tennis team will bring you daily analysis from the Australian Open.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 31, 2026 • 22min
Australian Open Daily: Elena Rybakina wins first Australian Open title
Gigi Salmon, Russell Fuller, Pat Cash and Annabel Croft react as Elena Rybakina beat world number one Aryna Sabalenka in Melbourne to win the Australian Open women's singles title for the first time in her career and secure her second Grand Slam title.
In the deciding set Rybakina was 3-0 down to Sabalenka before staging a remarkable comeback, winning the next five games to claim the first Grand Slam singles title of the season.
The team also look ahead to a historic men's singles final on Sunday which will either see Carlos Alcaraz become the youngest player to complete the career Grand Slam or Novak Djokovic crowned as the oldest player to win an men's singles Grand Slam title and the first to win 25 majors.Timecodes:
0:15 - Rybakina wins her second Grand Slam title
3:30 - What went wrong for Sabalenka?
12:30 - Previewing the men’s singles final: Carlos Alcaraz v Novak Djokovic
16:30 - How will both players deal with recovery from five set semi-finals

Jan 30, 2026 • 35min
Australian Open Daily: Djokovic & Alcaraz win thrillers to set up historic final
Gigi Salmon, Russell Fuller, Pat Cash and Annabel Croft review a dramatic day of men's singles semi-final action, where both Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz required five sets to beat Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev respectively. Alcaraz battled through a controversial cramp injury whilst Djokovic beat the reigning champion to reach his 38th Grand Slam final at the age of 38. Plus, the team react to the news that Emma Raducanu has split from her coach Francis Roig.1:00 - Novak Djokovic beats Jannik Sinner
8:00 - Novak Djokovic’s Interview
9:45 - Carlos Alcaraz Interview
12:00 - How Alexander Zverev lost having served for the match
21:30 - Emma Raducanu splits with coach Francis Roig

Jan 29, 2026 • 22min
Australian Open Daily: Sabalenka & Rybakina reach women's final
Gigi Salmon and Russell Fuller are joined by Annabel Croft and Pat Cash as they review the semi-finals of the women's singles at the Australian Open. Aryna Sabalenka beat Elina Svitolina to reach her fourth Australian Open final in a row, whilst Elena Rybakina beat Jessica Pegula in straight sets to end her three year long wait for a Grand Slam final and to set up a rematch of the 2023 final.They also discuss the odd incident where the umpire called hindrance on Sabalenka during the first set, whether Serena Williams is teasing a comeback and Neal Skupski keeping the flag waving for the Brits as he makes it to the men's doubles final in Melbourne.1:00 - Why so many straight sets matches?
3:00 - Elena Rybakina makes her first final in three years
7:00 - Sabalenka makes her seventh consecutive hard court Grand Slam final
9:00 - Sabalenka hindrance incident
12:30 - Sabalenka gives her thoughts on the hindrance call
15:50 - Will Serena Williams make a comeback?
19:45 - Neal Skupski into doubles final

Jan 28, 2026 • 24min
Australian Open Daily: Djokovic Advances After Musetti Injury as Sinner Awaits
Gigi Salmon is joined by Annabel Croft, Mark Woodforde and Abigail Johnson at Rod Laver Arena to reflect on a dramatic second day of Australian Open quarter-finals. Novak Djokovic reaches his 13th Australian Open semi-final after Lorenzo Musetti retires injured despite leading by two sets, raising questions about Djokovic’s form and fitness.Defending champion Jannik Sinner books his place in the last four with a straight-sets win over Ben Shelton, while Elena Rybakina ends Iga Swiatek’s career Grand Slam bid and Jessica Pegula continues her run with victory over Amanda Anisimova.Timecodes:02:01 – Djokovic progresses after Musetti injury
09:12 – Sinner into the semis despite some shaky moments
15:01 – Rybakina ends Swiatek’s Grand Slam hopes
19:52 – Pegula books her semi-final spot

Jan 27, 2026 • 21min
Australian Open Daily: Gauff Crashes Out as Alcaraz Breaks Through
Gigi Salmon is joined by Russell Fuller and Pat Cash to react to Carlos Alcaraz reaching his first Australian Open semi-final with a straight-sets win over Alex De Minaur.They also discuss Coco Gauff’s heavy defeat to Elina Svitolina, Aryna Sabalenka’s relentless form, and the impact of extreme heat in Melbourne.Timecodes:00:31 – How the heat shaped the day
03:46 – Alcaraz reaches his first Australian Open semi-final
09:40 – Zverev sets up the last-four clash
11:13 – Coco Gauff’s shock exit
13:16 – Gauff on smashing her racket
15:26 – Sabalenka marches into the semi-finals

Jan 26, 2026 • 19min
Australian Open Daily: History Made as Top Seeds Set Up Blockbuster Quarter-Finals
Gigi Salmon, Russell Fuller and Mark Woodforde wrap up Day 9 at the Australian Open, where history is made with the top six seeds in both singles draws all reaching the quarter-finals.We run through a star-studded last eight, discuss the rise of the American women, hear from Jessica Pegula after her win over Madison Keys, and look ahead to brutal heat and a huge test for Alex De Minaur against Carlos Alcaraz.Timecodes:
01:11 – All top seeds reach the quarter-finals
05:55 – American women dominate the last eight
07:38 – Jessica Pegula speaks to Russell Fuller
13:10 – Extreme heat forecast for Tuesday
16:40 – Woodforde predicts De Minaur v Alcaraz

Jan 25, 2026 • 23min
Australian Open Daily: Alcaraz Serve Sparks Djokovic Comparisons
Gigi Salmon is joined by Russell Fuller and Annabel Croft to wrap up Day 8 at the Australian Open with Carlos Alcaraz's serve in the spotlight and whether it's been modelled on Novak Djokovic.Djokovic himself has a walkover into the last eight but what does Alex De Minaur’s run means for the home fans?There’s also chat on Aryna Sabalenka’s record-breaking tie-break streak and the rapid rise of American teenager Iva Jovic.Timecodes:01:49 – Why Alcaraz is still Annabel’s title favourite04:01 – Is Alcaraz modelling his serve on Djokovic?05:03 – Alcaraz reflects on his improved serve07:59 – Djokovic moves straight into the quarter-finals12:16 – Is Alex De Minaur ready for the next step?17:04 – Sabalenka thriving in the pressure moments18:15 – Teenager Iva Jovic reaches the last eight19:15 – Could Serena make a comeback?

Jan 24, 2026 • 20min
Australian Open Daily: Osaka withdraws, extreme heat saves Sinner
Gigi Salmon and Russell Fuller are joined by 1987 Wimbledon Champion Pat Cash to review day seven of the action from the 2026 Australian Open. Naomi Osaka withdrew from the competition due to injury, whilst Jannik Sinner benefited from the extreme heat in Melbourne, which he admitted helped him beat American Eliot Spizzirri. Meanwhile Novak Djokovic added yet another record to the history books with his 400th win in Grand Slam competitions to advance to round four, whilst Stan Wawrinka, a former Australian Open Champion in 2014 waved goodbye as he exited the tournament for the final time.2:00 - Naomi Osaka withdraws due to injury
6:00 - Heat problems save struggling Sinner
11:45 - Jannik Sinner interview
14:00 - Novak Djokovic gets his 400th Grand Slam win
17:15 - Stan Wawrinka exits last Australian Open

Jan 23, 2026 • 25min
Australian Open Daily: Norrie bows out, is British tennis punching below its weight?
Gigi Salmon, Russell Fuller and Grand Slam winning coach Dan Kiernan break down the sixth day of the Australian Open. Cameron Norrie exited at the hands of Alex Zverev, leaving no British players left in the singles competitions. Dan gives his response to if British tennis is punching below its weight. We also hear from Jamie Murray on the defeat of British doubles pair Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool.Yulia Putintseva aired her annoyance with the crowd after her win over Zeynep Sönmez, Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka make it through and how will the players deal with the extreme heat expected over the coming days.1:00 - Norrie loses to Zverev
4:00 - Cam Norrie Interview
5:00 - Assessing a disappointing Australian Open for the British singles players
6:30 - Dan Kiernan on whether British tennis punching below its weight
12:49 - Jamie Murray reacts to doubles loss
14:15 - Yulia Putintseva issues with the crowd
18:15 - Alcaraz and Sabalenka go through
19:20 - Getting prepared for the extreme heat

Jan 22, 2026 • 20min
Australian Open Daily: Stan's farewell tour marches on & Cirstea feuds with Osaka
Gigi Salmon, Russell Fuller and wheelchair tennis Grand Slam champion Andy Lapthorne discuss day five of the 2026 Australian Open from Melbourne. Stan Wawrinka won a marathon five-set match over Arthur Gea to reach the third round in his final Australian Open at the age of 40, and there was shock in store too with qualifier Nikola Bartunkova beating tenth seed Belinda Bencic in the women's singles.The team also react to the post-match exchange between Sorana Cirstea and Naomi Osaka, and Gigi’s look for a 5 Live tennis fashion correspondent continues.


