Carlos Alcaraz tries for his first indoor title, Elena Rybakina pushes restart, and a U.S. field dominates in Texas

The dust has settled from the season’s first major in Australia. The opening round of Davis Cup qualifying is behind us. Now, as January turns to February, the tours get underway in earnest again. For the women, that means another week in the heat, this time in Abu Dhabi. For the men, it means heading back indoors in Rotterdam and Dallas.

None of those tournaments will feature the four players who made it the farthest in Melbourne—Jannik Sinner, Madison Keys, Aryna Sabalenka and Alexander Zverev. While those four are either celebrating or recuperating, several players who had less-stellar starts Down Under—Carlos Alcaraz, Elena Rybakina, and Taylor Fritz, among others—will lace ’em up again and try to get a win under their belts this week.

Here are three storylines to follow:

Read more: Netflix teases first look at upcoming 'Carlos Alcaraz: My Way' documentary

Carlos Alcaraz gets a strong field, and a chance for revenge, in Rotterdam

Rotterdam has been a happy hunting ground for a few of Alcaraz’s peers, including 2024 champ Jannik Sinner. This year the Spaniard will make his debut as the top seed, and he’ll be trying to win the first indoor title of his career.

He may start with a little extra motivation, when he faces Botic Van De Zandschulp in the first round. The Dutchman put an early end to Alcaraz’s US Open campaign last summer, and chances are the Spaniard isn’t going to want that to happen twice.

The sledding won’t get any easier after that. In round two Alcaraz could play Felix Auger-Aliassime, fresh off his second title run of 2025, in Montpellier. Also in their half are Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev, Hubert and Hurkacz. Seeds in the other half include Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Alex De Minaur.

A title run is hardly a must for Alcaraz, but it would be nice to put his loss to Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open behind him, and get his first tournament win of the season, as quickly as possible.

Elena Rybakina pushes restart, this time without Goran Ivanisevic

The early days of January looked a new dawn for Rybakina. She had hired a new and experienced coach in Goran Ivanisevic, and, just as importantly, seemed to have parted ways with her old coach, Stefano Vukov, who has been provisionally suspended from the WTA Tour after allegations of abuse.

But any thoughts of a fresh start faded quickly, when she asked Vukov to join her in Australia. Soon Goran was gone, and Rybakina was knocked out of the year’s first Slam by eventual champ Madison Keys.

Read more: From rollercoaster to soap opera: Elena Rybakina's coaching woes leave her hanging

This week, she’ll make her return, coach-free, at the Abu Dhabi Open, the first event of February’s sandy swing through the Saudi peninsula. Rybakina is the top seed, followed by Paula Badosa and Daria Kasatkina. Badosa’s semifinal in Melbourne makes her a player to watch again.

Read more: Daria Kasatkina erroneously listed with Spanish nationality in Abu Dhabi draw ceremony

Taylor Fritz leads a (nearly) all-American field into Dallas

Fritz may have had the most disappointing Australian Open of anyone. He was coming in after runner-up finishes at the US Open and the ATP Finals. He looked sharp at United Cup to start the season. He was in a quarter without Sinner, Alcaraz, or Djokovic. And then, somehow, he lost to 38-year-old Gael Monfils.

Fritz will get back on the horse—or perhaps a mechanical bull—in Dallas, where he’s the top seed in a U.S.-heavy draw. He’ll be joined by nine of his countrymen, including Tommy Paul, Reilly Opelka, Alex Michelsen, Ben Shelton, and Frances Tiafoe. That’s a pretty fair showcase of U.S. talent and star power gathered in one place.