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MELBOURNE, Australia – Canadian Gabriel Diallo’s take is that you control the controllables. And the draws are … not in his control.
And so, the 24-year-old opens his Australian Open quest Sunday against one of the toughest opponents he could face: No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev of Germany.
“It’s a great opportunity because we’ll play on a big court (in this case, the biggest: Rod Laver Arena). When you start to play and see the matches on TV, and the players playing on the big stadiums, that’s where you want to be. That’s where I am now,” Diallo said. “It’s up to me to take advantage of it.”
It’s been a rough start to the 2026 season for Diallo, who fell ill for 6-7 days starting in Hong Kong, his first tournament of the season. He wasn’t alone; a lot of players in the various cities fell to a cold, or the flu.
He lost in the quarterfinals to his doubles partner – and the home favorite – Coleman Wong from a winning position. And he and Wong had to forfeit their doubles semifinal because of it.
Still not 100 per cent, he went to Adelaide and ended up losing in straight sets to Andrea Vavassori, the Italian who plays almost exclusively doubles even if he’s quite a capable singles player, and enters events when he can squeeze into the qualifying.
And now, Zverev. But he’s back to good health.
“It’s not the start of the season I’d have hoped for. But I’m aware with the new team that it will take some time. We’re trying to change a few things, so you have to leave the time to put all that in place. But I don’t think it’ll affect the performance here,” he said.
And that’s the big news with Diallo. After a five-year period under the mentorship of Québécois coach Martin Laurendeau, Diallo has moved on.
Two Swedes in control
The new coach is Johan Örtegren, a 47-year-old former player turned coach who has worked with Grigor Dimitrov and Laura Robson in the past, through the Good to Great Academy.
And it’s a Swedish tag team, as Diallo is also adding Jonas Bjorkman – a former top-five player in singles and No. 1 in doubles. Bjorkman has worked with a long list of players over the years as a coach, including Andy Murray.
“I knew (Örtegren) a little. And my agent was looking for someone who would complete it all. And Johan recommended Jonas, a fellow Swede,” Diallo said. “I had a good feeling the first time I talked to him. He did too, I think. He has a lot of expertise and I think he can complete the staff well.”
“Mutual agreement … no hard feelings”
With most coach-player relationships end – and they’re all hired to be fired – you hear a lot about “mutual agreement” and “we’ll always be friends” and all of the right things when they end.
Sometimes, it’s even true.
And Diallo says this is genuinely the case with the fellow québécois who supervised his journey from college to the top level of professional tennis.
“You can’t forget that the five years that I did with Martin that were really extraordinary. If you’d told me at the start that I’d make the top 50 in the world, would play in the four corners of the world, that I’d win a singles title, make third round in New York and play so many unforgettable matches, I’d never have believed you,” Diallo said. “Martin was one of the first ones to believe in the project, so I’m very appreciative of that. We have a very good relationship despite the fact that we’re no longer together.
I saw him more than my parents, and he saw me more than his wife. No one can take that away from us, and he’ll always remain a confidant.”
Laurendeau first began working with Diallo when he was part of the group of 5-6 players who were playing US college tennis and training in Montreal when they were home. And then, he and former French player Vincent Millot (who is a Québec resident) handled three college players who were making the transition to the pros.
And since Diallo began his rise, it was all Laurendeau, who also made the transition from college tennis to the pro level himself back in the day.
“We figured it was for the best that that I move on,” Diallo said. “He was there for the offseason with me, And Johan was also there, so that facilitated the transition.”
Next step – a Slam run
Diallo’s goal is to be a little more consistent throughout the season, with fewer highs and lows.
“And then, a solid foundation that starts with a complete baseline game, and continue to add tools to my arsenal to make me a bit harder to play than other players,” he said. “Yes, I have an aggressive game. And yes, I come to the net. But I also have then capacity to defend, and neutralize when it’s time to neutralize. So I have continue to finetune all that.”
The third round at the US Open in 2024 was a great effort, out of the qualifying as well. But in the four Grand Slam tournaments in 2025, Diallo went out in the second round, albeit to quality opponents: Karen Khachanov in Australia, Tallon Griekspoor in Paris, Taylor Fritz – in five sets – at Wimbledon and an inspired Jaume Munar in New York.
So the goal is clear.
“I’d like to know the feeling of being in the second week of a major, when the locker rooms are a little emptier, there are fewer people on the groundds, the juniors who are preparing for the tournament are around. “If I had a chance to experience that, these days, I’d be more than happy.”