“The innovation is obstructed, it’s sabotaged,” Novak Djokovic slams critics of Six Kings Slam

Serbia’s legendary tennis star Novak Djokovic has slammed critics of the Six Kings Slam. The 38-year-old is one of the participants of the ongoing exhibition event which will end on Saturday with the final between world number one Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Italy’s Jannik Sinner.

The other three players who featured in the competition were America’s Taylor Fritz, Germany’s Alexander Zverev, and Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas. The competition’s format was interesting, given that two players —Alcaraz and Djokovic—qualified directly for the semifinals.

It is not clear why the defending champion was not given that luxury. The two other semifinalists were confirmed on day one, with two matches played. The winner of the first match was world number two Sinner, who defeated Tsitsipas in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-3. In the other match, Fritz defeated Zverev in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4.

In the semifinal, Djokovic’s journey came to an end as he lost to Sinner in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-2. In the other semifinal, Fritz ended up on the losing side to Alcaraz in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-2. Sinner is defending his title as he lifted it last year after beating Alcaraz in the final with a score of 6–7(5–7), 6–3, 6–3.

There has been a lot of criticism about the nature of the competition that the Six Kings Slam is. The prize money on offer will be $6 million. There has been a lot of debate in the tennis world about players deciding to play exhibition events, especially at a time when so many of them complain about the demanding schedule.

In recent years, some big-name players questioned the tennis authorities' decision to extend the length of certain competitions, such as the Masters, from a standard one-week event to a 12-day event. Norway’s Casper Ruud, recently featured in the Spanish media outlet Punto de Break, where he criticised, in particular, the length of the tennis masters.

"Personally, I'm not a fan of this extension of the Masters 1000,” said Ruud. “It means you spend more time away from home. Monte-Carlo and Paris perfectly illustrate the speed and intensity of the Masters 1000. As a tennis fan, I find it more exciting when there's as much intensity and demanding matches from the start. But in theory, this two-week format should help the sport, so for us, more revenue and prize money. I understand that perspective. I've experienced both scenarios: winning a Masters 1000 over two weeks and losing in the first round. In both cases, it feels too long to me. If you lose in the first round at Indian Wells, you have Miami in two weeks. That's two weeks of expenses between accommodation, food, and team salaries. And you have to stay in the United States. Of course, we receive financial compensation in the form of bonuses at the end of the year. But we need to play to earn them. I feel like the ATP is going in one direction and the players in another.”

Now, Djokovic has come out and defended the Six Kings Slam event by stating that people who criticise events such as the one being organised in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Djokovic was of the opinion that in the world of tennis, innovation, such as the Six Kings Slam is being ‘obstructed and sabotaged’.

“Tennis has been a sport of elites, has that kind of foundation…good, because we have a heritage and tradition and history that we’re proud of, and it’s a very global sport,” said Djokovic as quoted by British media outlet Daily Express. “But it has so much potential that is unused, and that is on the bad side, because the innovation is obstructed, it’s sabotaged, because you have to behave a certain way that we’ve gotten used to seeing people talk or play.”