Novak Djokovic could win more money in Saudi Arabia next week than Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu have earned in their whole careers. The Serb is one of several big-name players who will battle it out for a huge payday at the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh.
It is the most lucrative event on the tennis calendar, with the winning player receiving more than double the prize money on offer at Wimbledon. A top prize of £4.8million is up for grabs, while each player will be paid an appearance fee of £1.2m just for turning up.
The eventual champion, therefore, could walk away with a combined £6m which is almost three times what Carlos Alcaraz received for winning Wimbledon.
If Djokovic wins the Six Kings Slam, he will take home over twice as much as Draper’s total career earnings. The young Brit, who picked up around £760,000 for reaching the semi-finals of the US Open, has earned £2.9m in prize money since turning professional in 2018.
Raducanu, meanwhile, has earned £3.4m in prize money over the course of her career. It is a figure which includes the £1.8m she took home for winning the US Open in 2021.
The prize money at the Six Kings Slam is certainly a lot of money, but it will be a mere drop in the ocean for Djokovic if he wins it. He sits at the top of the all-time earnings leaderboard with a total of £137.9m, nearly £50m more than Rafael Nadal in second place.
The likes of Alcaraz and Nadal will also be playing in Saudi Arabia, with Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune among the other stars on the entry list. However, not everybody is convinced that next week’s tournament will live up to expectations.
Andy Murray will not be among those glued to their screens after issuing a scathing review on X, formerly Twitter. The retired Brit claimed that ‘nobody cares’ about the event in response to a post from Liam Broady, who shared his enthusiasm after watching a promotional video.
“Speechless as to how damn cool this promo is,” wrote Broady. “Probably the best I’ve ever seen in tennis. Would watch this movie. 10/10.”
Murray, however, replied: “Except it’s not a movie, and you won’t watch it because it’s an exhibition tennis event that nobody cares about.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk