Carlos Alcaraz will try to enjoy facing “idol” and compatriot Rafael Nadal for one last time at the Six Kings Slam exhibition tennis tournament in Saudi Arabia on Thursday.
Alcaraz is in Riyadh for the lucrative event, which is not an ATP-sanctioned tournament but has Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner involved.
Nadal and Djokovic were each given a bye through to the last four and Alcaraz set up a potentially emotional clash with his fellow Spaniard after a 6-4 6-2 win over Holger Rune in Wednesday’s second quarter-final.
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Neymar joined Alcaraz on the Six Kings Slam court, much to the delight of the fans!
Nadal announced on October 10 that he would retire from the sport following next month’s Davis Cup Finals in Spain, where he will team up with Alcaraz.
Alcaraz acknowledged he had mixed feelings about being able to take on Nadal, who was his doubles partner at the Olympic Games in Paris, for a place in the Six Kings Slam final where a reported £4.6m is on offer for the winner of the exhibition event.
“Since I started to play tennis, I’m watching his matches. I look up to him and I grew up watching him. He was my idol, he is still my idol,” Alcaraz said during his on-court interview.
“A really important person for my life, for my career and he was one of the reasons that I wanted to become a professional tennis player. Knowing he is going to retire is pretty tough for everyone, for me.
“I will try to enjoy sharing the court with him once again, but I think it is really difficult for everyone.”
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Highlights of Jannik Sinner against Daniil Medvedev
World No 1 Sinner is also through to the semi-finals where he will face Djokovic following a dominant 6-0 6-3 victory over familiar foe Daniil Medvedev, who has lost eight of his last nine matches to the Italian.
Nadal: Too soon to compare Sinner-Alcaraz rivalry to me, Federer and Djokovic
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Nadal says Sinner and Alcaraz are already huge stars, but it is too soon to compare their rivalry to his with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic
“The next generation are very young, they’re winning Grand Slams and Masters 1000s. They are already huge stars and I’m sure if they are able to stay free of injuries they will build an amazing career,” said Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion.
“They are creating their own story so it’s not the right moment to compare because Novak is still there, while me and Roger have left but that’s part of a sports career.
“So the new generation are coming and we need to let them create their own rivalry and story. They don’t need to compare anything with us. Let’s see at the end of their career what they did and what we did.”
What’s coming up on Sky Sports Tennis in October?
- Almaty Open, Kazakhstan – ATP 250 (October 14-20 – Dan Evans in action)
- Stockholm Open, Sweden – ATP 250 (October 14-20)
- European Open, Antwerp – ATP 250 (October 14-20)
- Japan Open, Osaka – WTA 250 (October 14-20)
- Ningbo Open, China – WTA 500 (October 14-20 – Katie Boulter in action)
- Erste Bank Open, Vienna – ATP 500 (October 21-27)
- Swiss Indoors, Basel – ATP 500 (October 21-27)
- Guangzhou Open, China – WTA 250 (October 21-27)
- Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis, Tokyo – WTA 500 (October 21-27)
Sky Sports+ has officially launched and will be integrated into Sky TV, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.