The Six Kings Slam will return for a third straight year in Saudi Arabia, with the full six-player field now confirmed.

Held in Saudi Arabia since 2024, the exhibition has already produced two titles for Jannik Sinner, who is set to defend his crown this year. He will be joined by Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Taylor Fritz, Alexander Zverev, and Alex de Minaur in the 2026 edition.

The tournament is scheduled for October 21 to 24, placing it in the middle of the ATP Tour’s European indoor swing. The players will compete for a $6 million prize pool over those four days.

The event overlaps with tournaments in Lyon, Almaty, and Brussels, though all three are ATP 250 events and would be unlikely to attract the game’s leading names. Even so, the Six Kings Slam has again assembled a line-up that features several of the sport’s biggest drawcards.

Alcaraz, who has not played since the Barcelona Open in April, has so far confirmed only two events after the US Open, with the Laver Cup also on his schedule. His inclusion in the Saudi event therefore stands out as one of the more notable entries on the autumn calendar.

Alcaraz said: “I’m excited to return to Riyadh for another Six Kings Slam. The atmosphere is always incredible, and it’s a privilege to be part of such a unique event alongside some of the best players in the world.”

Sinner also welcomed his return, saying: “I’m happy to be back in Riyadh to defend my Six Kings Slam title once again. It’s a great event with an amazing atmosphere, and I can’t wait to compete this October.”

Djokovic, who has played every edition so far without reaching the final, added: “Riyadh has always given me a fantastic welcome, and it’s great to be back once again,” said the 24-time Grand Slam champion. “Six Kings Slam has become a special event on the tennis calendar, and I’m looking forward to competing in front of the fans this October.”

Carlos Alcaraz has now been sidelined for the longest stretch since his ATP Tour debut in 2020, and his absence has been felt well beyond the results sheet. The Spaniard’s troubles began with a wrist injury against Otto Virtanen in the first round of the Barcelona Open, a setback that ended his run at his home event and then ruled him out of the remainder of the clay swing, including Roland Garros, as well as the full grass court season.

That absence also meant Alcaraz was not part of Wimbledon this year, while Jannik Sinner went on to reach the final for the second straight season and beat Alexander Zverev. The final, played on Sunday, July 12th, drew a peak audience of 5.95 million on BBC One. That marked a sharp decline from the 2025 championship, which reached 8.3 million at its peak.

The contrast between the two years is difficult to ignore. In 2025, Alcaraz and Sinner met for the Wimbledon title, with the Italian winning his first crown after a four-set contest. Coming a month after their epic Roland Garros encounter, it added to the sense that Alcaraz has become one of the sport’s most compelling attractions.

That view has long been shared by many observers, and Patrick McEnroe gave his own assessment on The Spout Podcast. “Sinner’s a great player, but he’s a little more mechanical in the way he plays,” said the American. “His personality is different, you know Bjorn Borg was quiet, when he used to play against my brother he would be very stoic. You have to be who you are.

“I find that tennis players, their game often models in a way their personality. Are they outgoing, do they go for their shots, do they come to the net? Sinner’s a little bit more of a reserved guy off the court, but he couldn’t be nicer and he couldn’t be classier.

“He’s trying to develop his game so he can continue to compete with Alcaraz tournament in and tournament out. But this guy is awesome too, he has won four majors already.

“He has taken the ball-striking ability off the ground to another level, he just doesn’t quite have as much variety of shot as Alcaraz. But boy, he hits the ball as well off the ground strokes as I have ever seen!”

Alcaraz remains away from competition, but the numbers from Wimbledon suggest fans are already waiting for his return.

Alexandra Eala will not be returning to the doubles court alongside Venus Williams at the Washington Open, after deciding against the partnership shortly before the tournament began.

The pair had already teamed up once this summer, making their doubles debut in Bad Homburg and advancing to the quarter finals of the grass-court event. Their names were again included on the Washington entry list, but Eala was removed and replaced by Diana Shnaider before play started.

Williams addressed the change in her pre-tournament press conference and said the pair had hoped to play together again after their first outing.

“We had a great time playing at Bad Homburg so we were looking forward to playing again.” said Williams. “Didn’t work out this time. Would love for there to be future times. We’ll see what happens.”

Eala later expanded on the decision, making clear that her priority was the singles draw. The 21-year-old said she had great respect for Williams, but felt she could not fully commit to both events so soon after returning.

“I have so much respect for Venus. I am so grateful for every opportunity that I have to be around her, to learn from her, to hit with her,” said the 21-year-old.

“But I do think this is my first week coming back, and I think that Venus is someone who deserves a partner who can give their all physically, emotionally, mentally when they’re on court with her.

“I think right now I think I can only do that for singles. I don’t have the capacity yet to be able to give that in both singles and doubles. I’m really grateful for the opportunity that I had, or have, and hopefully we see more of it in the future.”

Andy Roddick has since weighed in and supported Eala’s call, saying a young player should still be careful with her body and that singles remains the main focus for the summer.

Eala opens her Washington Open campaign against Qinwen Zheng in the first round. The Chinese player, an Olympic Gold Medalist and former Grand Slam finalist, received a wildcard from the tournament.