The Australian Open’s opening week delivered an unexpected result on Wednesday evening that left the tennis world buzzing. The Million Dollar 1 Point Slam exhibition event at Rod Laver Arena produced one of the most shocking upsets in recent memory, with a local amateur player taking on some of the sport’s biggest names.
The victory sent shockwaves through the tennis community, prompting immediate reactions from top professionals, including Coco Gauff and Carlos Alcaraz, among others, across social media platforms.
Professional Players’ Reaction Following Jordan Smith’s Million Dollar 1 Point Slam Win
The 1 Point Slam followed a unique format, where the entire match comes down to a single point, with rock-paper-scissors determining the serving player. The exhibition featured 48 competitors ranging from elite professionals to state champions and celebrity participants.
Jordan Smith, a 29-year-old New South Wales state champion, entered the competition having qualified through the community ranks.
World No. 3 Gauff posted an Instagram story from her hotel room, featuring Smith on her TV after she won the match. She acknowledged the win and wrote, “omgggggggggggggggggggg Amatuer out beat all of us👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 congrats Jordan🫨🫨🫨”
Frances Tiafoe showed respect to the champion through his Instagram story as well, simply writing, “Jordan Smith,” which perfectly captured the magnitude of the epic moment. Fellow American Amanda Anisimova reposted Tiafoe’s story, adding, “Jordan and Joanna are legends fr,” paying respect to both the finalists of 1 Point Slam.
Despite it being the first month of the year, Australian player Alex de Minaur already called fellow Aussie’s win as the “Best moment of the year” on his Instagram story, writing, “Yessssss!!!!!!!!! Best moment of the year!!!💰💰💰💰💰” with an image of Smith on his television during his post-match speech.
Even World No. 1 Alcaraz couldn’t hide his excitement as he took to X to share his feelings. Following Tiafoe, he also simply wrote, “Jordan Smith,” which was enough to announce the result of the tournament.
Jordan Smith
— Carlos Alcaraz (@carlosalcaraz) January 14, 2026
Interestingly, a video is going viral on X that actually captured Alcaraz and Tiafoe’s reaction the moment Smith won. In the video, both professionals held each other and started jumping and shouting after the decisive moment, with Alcaraz even holding his head.
Carlitos’ reaction to the winner of the 1 Point Slam 🎥😂 pic.twitter.com/CycRRMW0Bc
— Alcaraz Updates🐝 (@alcarazzupdates) January 14, 2026
“so so sooo happy an amateur won. we need 1 point slams at every grand slam pls. 🥹🥹🥹 so fun to watch #1pointslam,” German tennis player Eva Lys wrote on X, demanding a 1 Point Slam before the main draw of all four majors. The same thoughts resonated with Taylor Fritz’s girlfriend, Morgan Riddle, who also had the same request.
so so sooo happy an amateur won. we need 1 point slams at every grand slam pls. 🥹🥹🥹 so fun to watch #1pointslam
— Eva Lys (@evalys_) January 14, 2026
1 Point Slam: A Fun Way to Kickoff the Australian Open Main Draw
Smith opened his campaign against Australian player Bailey Smith before besting Brazilian professional Laura Pigossi. His third-round match against the two-time defending Australian Open champion and World No. 2 Jannik Sinner became the turning point that nobody anticipated.
Sinner’s serve failed to clear the net, handing Smith a victory without even playing a shot. The amateur then stepped up his level, defeating WTA World No. 4 and two-time Grand Slam finalist Anisimova, before navigating past Spain’s Pedro Martinez in the semi-final.
In the final, Smith faced WTA World No. 117 Joanna Garland, who had carved her own path through the draw by eliminating several notable names. Garland had defeated Alexander Zverev, Nick Kyrgios, Maria Sakkari, and Donna Vekić on her journey to the championship match.
When Garland’s backhand sailed wide, Smith claimed the $1 million prize along with an additional $50,000 bonus for his academy.
Smith himself struggled to process the magnitude of his achievement when speaking after the victory. “Coming into tonight, I would have been happy winning just one point. I was so nervous but enjoyed being out here; it was a great experience,” he said.
The Australian Open main draw begins on Sunday, January 18, setting the stage for professional tennis’s first major championship of the year.
