Fritz and Sinner shine on opening day of Six Kings Slam
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Day One of the Six Kings Slam delivered world-class tennis and electric energy in Riyadh as Taylor Fritz and Jannik Sinner both claimed impressive straight-sets victories to open the event in style.
World No.4 Taylor Fritz of the United States powered past Alexander Zverev6-3 6-4, showcasing dominant serving and aggressive baseline play to earn the first win of the event. Zverev, hampered by a shoulder issue, was not able to counter Fritz’s precision and consistency as the American powered his way to victory in front of a packed crowd at the ANB Arena.
Taylor Fritz said:
“Happy to get through. It’s tough sometimes when you are having routine holds, you’re holding pretty easily and then it gets to serving out the match and you get a little tight, I was a little tight with a couple of shots but I was able to serve it out in the end. Riyadh has been great, the reception has been great and hospitality here has been amazing.”
On the challenge of playing Carlos Alaraz in the semifinal tomorrow
“There’s a lot of different things he can do, the drop shots, the coming to the net, he’s so fast. He just does a lot of different things and kind of always keeps you guessing.”
Alexander Zverev on the shoulder issue:
“?I got this issue today, which was unlucky, because the last few days I was practicing really, really well, and I was playing really well, and I was feeling like my old self a little bit. But today, the issue occurred, it actually happened in the warm up. So, a little bit unlucky for me.”
In the evening’s second match Wimbledon and Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner continued his stellar 2025 form with a commanding 6-2 6-3 triumph over Stefanos Tsitsipas. Sinner’s sharp groundstrokes and relentless tempo proved too much for the Greek star, as the world No. 2 moved smoothly into the semifinals, where Novak Djokovic awaits.
Sinner, the defending Six Kings Slam champion, was happy with his return to the court at the ANB Arena, he said:
“I’m very happy to be back here. It’s a very different tournament. So you know, it’s the second time in a row that I play, and it was a great atmosphere, which for us is the most important. And it was a good match for my side, very, very solid from the back of the court, and Stefanos is very difficult to play. So I’m very happy about today‘s match, and let’s see what’s coming tomorrow.”
For Tsitsipas, making his debut at Six Kings Slam, the loss does not stop him taking away positive memories of his time in Saudi Arabia, he said:
“It’s definitely one of those events that you’re going to remember for a long time. It’s great that Saudi Arabia is so proactive when it comes to professional tennis, and I’m really hoping they can continue developing the way they have been the last couple of years.
“It’s one of the coolest tournaments of the year. We don’t get tournaments like this, it feels almost like a boxing match. Each player has his own locker room, and they’re just six of us, and we’re competing for one big prize.”
The Six Kings Slam, part of Riyadh Season, brings together the six of the world’s best men’s players for a tennis showcase in the heart of Saudi Arabia. Broadcasting live on Netflix for the first time, the event marks another major milestone in the Kingdom’s growing entertainment calendar.
The action continues tomorrow at 7.30pm AST (6.30pm CET, 5.30pm BST, 12.30pm ET, 9.30am PT) when Taylor Fritz takes on World No.1 and reigning Roland Garros and US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz before 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic takes on World No.2 Jannik Sinner not before 9pm, both matches will be broadcast live, globally on Netflix.
