BY OSABUOHIEN VIVIAN ROSE
Jannik Sinner defeated Spanish Carlos Alcaraz in the Six Kings Slam final for the second year in a row to win the $6 million (£4.47m) prize money.
The relentless world No. 2 defeated the world No. 1 in a 6-2, 6-4 in Riyadh, displaying the improvement on serve that he had sought after losing to Alcaraz in the U.S. Open final last month.
All six players at the event earned $1.5 million for participating, with significant appearance fees paid to some players.
Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic, Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas joined Sinner and Alcaraz. Zverev lost to Fritz in an hour in the quarterfinals, with Tsitsipas losing to Sinner at a similar clip. Alcaraz then beat Fritz and Sinner beat Djokovic in the semifinals.
Djokovic retired from a third-place match against Fritz after losing the first set in a tiebreak.
In the wake of the U.S. Open defeat, Sinner acknowledged that he would have to become less “predictable” to consistently beat Alcaraz even on hard courts, given the Spaniard’s improvements to his serve in 2025.
In quick condition in Riyadh, Sinner seized the iniative early and never relinquished it, going unbroken and rarely looking under pressure.
Both players will now turn their attentions to the season-ending ATP Tour Finals in Turin, Italy, but Sinner will first play the Vienna Open, an ATP 500 event. Alcaraz has a 2,540-point lead in the Race to Turin, which counts rankings points won in 2025. He will still be the world No. 1 till the year ends.
