Jannik Sinner meets IShowSpeeed, Osaka hospital birthday, Rybakina’s stunning Chinese look

In a new Daily Dose of Social Media, the stars of the Six Kings Slam were present on social media after the semifinal duels, with posts from Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic thanking the fans, in addition to a unique video of Jannik Sinner alongside the renowned influencer IShowSpeed.

Meanwhile, Naomi Osaka ended up celebrating her birthday in the hospital after an injury scare while competing at the Osaka Open, while Anna Kalinskaya shared some photos of her days in Asia, where she enjoyed a yacht trip with her colleague, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Naomi Osaka shared some photos of her birthday "celebration" in her hometown of Osaka during the Japan Open, after an injury scare sent her to the hospital following her second-round match against Suzan Lamens. The former world No. 1 turned 28 mid-tournament—where she is the first seed—and will face Romania's Jaqueline Cristian in the quarterfinals.

The 4-time Grand Slam champion had a tight match against Lamens, managing to take the first set narrowly, 7-6(6), and then conceding the second set 3-6. In the third set, Osaka took a quick lead up to 5-0, but faced physical problems in her left leg, which forced her to call a medical time-out. Lamens took advantage of the moment to react, breaking back and saving a couple of match points, but the birthday girl finally managed to close the match 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-2 and advance to the quarterfinals.

Anna Kalinskaya continues with the final part of her season in the Asian swing after a debut loss at the Wuhan Open against Anna Kalinskaya, and she awaits her return next week at the Tokyo Open, a tournament that will feature players like Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini, and Elena Rybakina.

The world No. 38 shared some photos of a day out with none other than Aryna Sabalenka, with whom she apparently enjoyed a boat trip during the Asian swing. Sabalenka will be off the court for a couple of weeks after winning the Wuhan Open title and securing the world No. 1 year-end ranking. She awaits her participation in the WTA Finals for the fifth consecutive year, seeking her first title there.

With the men's Asian swing over, the Six Kings Slam, an exhibition tournament featuring the ATP Tour's biggest stars, is taking place, with Carlos Alcaraz as a major protagonist in his return to the court as world No. 1. The Spaniard—who withdrew from the Shanghai Masters due to injury—reached the final of the tournament after overcoming Taylor Fritz in their third duel in the last month, having fallen at the Laver Cup and beaten him in the Tokyo Open final. The 6-time Grand Slam champion shared some photos of his debut in Riyadh, where he advanced to the final to face Jannik Sinner.

A few hours after Alcaraz's duel, it was Novak Djokovic's turn to take the court, the last player yet to debut at the Six Kings Slam. The 24-time Grand Slam champion received a warm welcome from the crowd in Riyadh but ended up falling in straight sets to world No. 2 Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. The Serb will play the third-place match this Saturday against Taylor Fritz after being eliminated in another defeat to Sinner.

Jannik Sinner is precisely one of the biggest stars of the Six Kings Slam and is preparing to play the final against his classic rival, Alcaraz. The tournament, which is also broadcast worldwide on Netflix, included the renowned YouTuber Speeed among its collaborators, who traveled to Riyadh to follow the tournament closely and shared a video on social media alongside none other than Sinner, where they praised the food they've had in Saudi Arabia.

Elena Rybakina starred in a unique photoshoot in Ningbo, wearing traditional Chinese attire ahead of her Ningbo Open debut. The Kazakh debuted this Thursday against Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska and ended up securing a tight 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-3 victory to advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament, while keeping alive her hopes of securing a spot in the WTA Finals.

The Kazakh is ranked 9th in the WTA Race—just over 300 points behind the current 8th place, Jasmine Paolini—who is still in competition. Rybakina must fight for the title if she wants to secure her spot in the Finals in Riyadh in a couple of weeks, and she will also have the opportunity at the Tokyo Open next week to add another handful of points before the WTA Race concludes. In the quarterfinals, she must defeat Ajla Tomljanovic if she wants to maintain her hope for Riyadh.