Andy Murray has scathed the upcoming Six Kings Slam event in Saudi Arabia, claiming “nobody cares” about the blockbuster tennis showcase. Riyadh is set to host the most lucrative tennis event of the 2024 calendar in October, with an all-star cast ready to descend on the Middle East to compete.
The Six Kings Slam is a new competition that, due to being officially classed as an exhibition, won’t offer ATP ranking points.
However, the jaw-dropping prize money on the table has lured the world’s best tennis stars to get involved from October 16 to October 19.
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune will be in action at The Venue in Riyadh.
Each of the six players is guaranteed a minimum of £1.12million for their participation, which is considerably more than what losing semi-finalists received at Wimbledon this summer.
But the inaugural champion will pocket a staggering £4.5m, almost twice as much as Sinner took home for winning the US Open earlier in the month.
On Friday, the Six Kings Slam released a high-budget five-minute film to promote the event, featuring the six players scheduled to feature in the Saudi capital.
Directed by Los Perez, it has earned mass praise and boosted excitement for the glamorous event in just over two weeks’ time.
The short film follows each participant placed in historical scenes involving links to their nationalities and play styles.
Alcaraz battles an android on a court suspended over a desert, Sinner appears as a Renaissance sculptor, while Rune stands on a Viking longboat before parting the ocean with a return.
Medvedev then shows up on a bear before Nadal emerges in clay-golem form – an obvious nod to his career-long dominance on the surface.
Djokovic is to last to feature, standing in a snowy mountain range roaring back at wolves before setting a court alight with a ferocious stroke.
Liam Broady was among those who shared their enthusiasm about the promotion, titled ‘Call of the Kings’.
He posted on X: “Speechless as to how damn cool this promo is. Probably best I’ve ever seen in tennis. Would watch this movie. 10/10.”
But Murray didn’t share his sentiment, belittling the event and claiming Broady won’t watch it due to its exhibition status.
“Except it’s not a movie, and you won’t watch it because it’s an exhibition tennis event that nobody cares about,” the retired Brit wrote.
