India, Feb. 1 -- Carlo Alcaraz did not just win the 2026 Australian Open. He rewrote Tennis history.

Melbourne gives him the career Grand Slam, pushes him to seven majors, and forces tennis into a rarer debate than "next big thing": are we watching the greatest player in the making?

Alcaraz is 22 years, 8 months and 27 days old on the day he lifts the trophy. He beat Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5, denying the Serb a 25th major and completing the only Slam Alcaraz didn't win yet. The result matters not only because it is a title, but because it is a proof of concept: this isn't dominance that lives on one surface or one season. It travels.

Most GOAT conversations are premature until a player has lived through three stages: breakout,...