Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will face each other in another final after they both easily navigated last-four ties at the lucrative Six Kings Slam on Thursday.
After stellar battles at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and at the US Open earlier this year, organisers of this week’s exhibition tournament in Saudi Arabia will hope for another fine instalment when the top-two in the world renew acquaintances on Saturday.
Six-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz comfortably beat Taylor Fritz 6-4 6-2 and Sinner claimed victory by the same score over an ailing Novak Djokovic later on the second day of the contentious event, which is not ATP-sanctioned and has attracted criticism.
Sinner made light work of Djokovic after similar one-side battles over the past 12 months with the 24-time major champion.
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Highlights of Jannik Sinner against Novak Djokovic in the semi-final of the Six Kings Slam
The Italian was able to break Djokovic in the third game after an excellent rally and two aces closed out set one.
When Djokovic was broken at the start of the second set, the writing was on the wall for the 38-year-old who suffered a seventh successive defeat to Sinner.
Top seed Alcaraz, who argued pre-match that players can be vocal against the packed tennis calendar and play short exhibitions, never looked back against Fritz after a break to move 3-2 up.
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Highlights of Carlos Alcaraz against Taylor Fritz in the semi-final of the Six Kings Slam
After he clinched the opener with his second set point, a superb drop shot sealed the first break of the second set in the fifth game and five games in a row sent the Spaniard into Saturday’s showpiece where a reported six million dollars is on offer for the winner.
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