Sinner and Fritz motivated by the $6M prize at the Six Kings Slam

Some tennis fanatics are wondering why the top players, who often complain about the sport’s packed schedule, decide to participate in exhibitions like the Six Kings Slam, which begins this Wednesday in Saudi Arabia. Taylor Fritz is clear about the reasons, and they are in the millions. Specifically, six million.

I would love for them to show me a tournament where you can play three matches, or two for the top two seeds, and potentially win six million dollars. I would love to hear it from them.

Taylor Fritz

Fritz is one of the six tennis players who will participate in the second edition of the Six Kings Slam. Among them is Jannik Sinner, who returns after taking the top prize last year in Saudi Arabia, a sum greater than that offered by most real tournaments to their champions. Recently, the US Open set a record with a payment of 5 million dollars to the individual winners of the women’s and men’s divisions. This event is part of Saudi Arabia’s growing investment in tennis, and vice versa, including the WTA Finals in Riyadh, the ATP Next Gen Finals in Jedda, and the Public Investment Fund’s sponsorship of the tour rankings. Legends like Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova have expressed criticism about the sport’s links with Saudi Arabia due to concerns about LGBTQ+ and women’s rights. In the Six Kings Slam, each player is guaranteed an appearance fee of $1.5 million, and the winner takes home a bonus that raises their total to four times that amount, with the matches broadcast live on Netflix.

Money is not something we try to hide. We know how much is at stake here, and it would be a lie if I told you it’s not a motivation. Every player here will try to win as many matches as possible. It’s like any other exhibition, only here there’s a little more motivation.

Jannik Sinner

Sinner withdrew from his last match, a week and a half ago at the Shanghai Masters, due to severe leg cramps. However, he assured that he is doing well.

I recovered. We took a few days off to rest and now we are ready for the rest of the season. Mentally I am in good shape and I will give 100%.

Jannik Sinner

In the first day, Sinner will face Stefanos Tsitsipas, while Fritz will play against Alexander Zverev. The winner of the Fritz-Zverev match will face Carlos Alcaraz on Thursday, and the winner of the Sinner-Tsitsipas match will face Novak Djokovic. After a day of rest on Friday, the winners of the semifinals will face each other on Saturday to close the tournament. Djokovic holds the men’s record of 24 Grand Slam trophies, Alcaraz has six and Sinner, four; each has been number 1 in the world. Fritz was runner-up to Sinner at the 2024 US Open. Zverev is a three-time finalist in a major tournament, including losses to Sinner at this year’s Australian Open and to Alcaraz at last year’s Roland Garros. Tsitsipas was twice runner-up to Djokovic in Grand Slam tournaments.