Roddick dismisses Six Kings Slam: “The whole thing just looked completely unnatural”

Andy Roddick doesn’t seem to be a fan of the Six Kings Slam after stating that it lacks the same charm as the Laver Cup. Despite the presence of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, as well as world No. 1 and 2 Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the tournament failed to impress Roddick.

For the former world No. 1, the exhibition tournament, which awarded over 14 million dollars in prize money, wasn’t particularly appealing, although he acknowledged the significant financial benefits for the players. "It definitely doesn't make me sick to my stomach that he made more than 25% of my career prize money in three days of exhibition tennis. That's great! In all seriousness, I never begrudge anyone their choices,” he said.

“Listen, if someone's going to pay you that amount of money, and all you have to do is some awkward dancing... The whole thing just looked completely unnatural. It looked weird. I had no interest in it,” the 2003 US Open champion added.

Roddick closely followed the tournament but felt that there was a lack of interaction between players on the court. “Even with Novak and Rafa involved, it didn’t feel right. It felt like an exhibition, but without the charm of something like the Laver Cup, where you get to see the interactions between players and the legends get brought back.”

“For better or worse, we're going to see more of these types of things – these exhibition matches with outsized budgets. It’s easier to pay Sinner $6 million when you're not responsible for 122 other players at an event, plus doubles, and all the other expenses.”

Each player earned 1.5 million dollars for their participation, including Holger Rune and Daniil Medvedev, who only played one match. Even more surprising was the 6 million dollars given to champion Sinner, who received the largest prize money in tennis history. “It's one court, not a million courts, and there are no major expenses. It’s a marketing budget for a government, so I think it’s great for them. Fantastic – take your money,” Andy Roddick concluded.