When you are the director of the Masters 1000 in Paris, the apprehension is always the same as the first racket shots get closer in the Palais omnisports de Paris-Bercy. Scheduled a few days before the Masters – a tournament bringing together the eight best players of the season – the Parisian meeting often takes on the appearance of a preparation week for the big names in Tennis, when it is not simply skipped by those wishing to save their last strength for the “masters tournament”.
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The 2024 season is no exception to the rule, and only the German Alexander Zverev (world number 3) represented the Top 8 on Friday, at the quarter-final stage. The fault, in particular, of a virus having forced the number 1, Jannik Sinner, to withdraw at the last moment.
“Whether we are a high-level athlete or not, we are all a little fragile from an immune point of view at the end of the year”Cédric Pioline apologized. The tournament director did not fail to add that “it’s not up to [lui] to judge » whether the Italian's schedule is consistent or not. Understand: if he could have preserved himself better to line up at Bercy.
For what ? Because between his title in Shanghai in mid-October and his arrival in Paris, Jannik Sinner made a detour to Riyadh, to compete in the Six Kings Slam exhibition. For four days, the capital of Saudi Arabia welcomed six of the biggest stars of the discipline – including Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal –, charmed by a “prize money” never seen before for a tennis competition: almost 1.5 million dollars (around 1.4 million euros) guaranteed for each participant, and even 5.5 million dollars for the winner.
“The players are a bit hypocritical”
Jannik Sinner walked away with the jackpot, but without points in the standings – exhibition tournaments do not award any. “Obviously, it’s a very nice sum, but I went there because there were possibly the six best players in the world, and I wanted to measure myself against them”claimed the Italian at the microphone of Eurosport. “If I had to say that I went there just for fun or to play without thinking about money, I would be lying”admitted his opponent in the final, Carlos Alcaraz, during a press conference in Paris.
The Spaniard knows what he is talking about, he makes numerous appearances at this type of event. In December 2023, he was already in Riyadh against Novak Djokovic, before participating with Rafael Nadal in a match organized by Netflix in Las Vegas in March 2024, then in the Laver Cup – a team competition created by Roger Federer – in Berlin in september. Each time, these events helped him fill his bank account. But also to nourish paradoxes.
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