RIYADH: Jannik Sinner beat Daniil Medvedev 6-0, 6-3 on Wednesday at the Six Kings Slam, an exhibition event for a half-dozen men that awards money but no ATP ranking points and is Saudi Arabia’s latest foray into tennis.
Riyadh will host the WTA Finals next month to open a three-year deal as the kingdom continues to invest in various sports.
Carlos Alcaraz was scheduled to play Holger Rune in Wednesday’s other match at the Six Kings Slam.
On Thursday, the top-ranked Sinner — who was cleared in a doping case shortly before winning the US Open last month, although the World Anti-Doping Agency has appealed that exoneration — will take on Novak Djokovic, and Alcaraz or Rune will face Rafael Nadal.
That will be the first match for Nadal since his exit at the Paris Olympics in July — and his first match since he announced last week that he would be retiring after playing for Spain in the Davis Cup next month.
He is an ambassador for the Saudi Tennis Federation.
After a day off for everyone on Friday, the winners of Thursday’s two matches will meet in the event’s final on Saturday.
Nadal, 38, owns 22 Grand Slam titles; Djokovic, 37, has won 24, a record for the Open era. They were given byes into the semifinals in Riyadh.
Sinner won his first two Grand Slam trophies in 2024, and Alcaraz collected the two other men’s majors this season to raise his career total to four. Medvedev won the 2021 US Open.
Rune is the only member of the six-player field without a major championship and the only one who hasn’t been ranked No. 1.
Jannik Sinner eliminates Daniil Medvedev at Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia
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Jannik Sinner eliminates Daniil Medvedev at Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia
- Carlos Alcaraz was scheduled to play Holger Rune in Wednesday’s other match at the Six Kings Slam
- Nadal, 38, owns 22 Grand Slam titles; Djokovic, 37, has won 24, a record for the Open era
Bayern confirms contract talks with England captain Harry Kane have begun
- The move to Germany saw him win a long-awaited first major trophy of his career as Bayern won the Bundesliga last season
FRANKFURT: Harry Kane could be set for a longer stay in Germany after Bayern Munich confirmed it’s in talks to extend the England captain’s contract.
Kane joined Bayern from Tottenham in 2023 on a contract running to the end of next season. The move to Germany saw him win a long-awaited first major trophy of his career as Bayern won the Bundesliga last season.
He’s been the Bundesliga’s top scorer twice since then and, with 21 goals in 19 Bundesliga games this season, could yet chase down Robert Lewandowski’s single-season record of 41 goals.
“We’re talking and it’s clear to everyone that there has to be a decision at some stage,” Bayern board member for sport Max Eberl said at a league event Monday. “We’re waiting for an answer from (defender Dayot Upamecano) and we’re talking with Harry.”
Kane has scored 119 goals in 126 games for Bayern — breaking longstanding German records along the way — and has 34 in 30 games for Bayern in all competitions this season.
Chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen indicated talks could move at a relaxed pace.
“Harry has a lot of trust. He feels very good in Munich,” Dreesen said in comments reported by German agency dpa. “We have absolutely no reason to hurry.”
