Two-time Grand Slam winner Alexander Zverev looks set to finally face Carlos Alcaraz and/or Jannik Sinner in 2026 although it will only be in the exhibition Six Kings Slam – and he has to get past his nemesis first up.

The third edition of the tournament, which offers eye-watering prize money to all participants, will take place from 21 to 24 October on indoor hard courts in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Sinner is gunning for a hat-trick of titles.

Sinner has so far made $12 million – $6m per title – as all six players are guaranteed a $1.5 million participation fee while the winner earns an extra $4.5 million for a total of $6m.

The Italian beat Alcaraz in both finals and they could meet again in the final as they are on opposite sides of the draw.

But there are some question marks over the Italian’s participation as he has not played tennis since winning the Wimbledon title in July as he is struggling with a knee injury.

Tennis News

The world No 1 has already missed the North American swing, including the US Open, and this week’s China Open and there are concerns that he could miss the remainder of the 2026 season.

But the fact that he did not pull out of the Six Kings Slam before the draw was made indicates that he will make an appearance.

Two of the six players receive byes into the semi-finals, and they are determined by Grand Slam accomplishments with 24-time major winner Novak Djokovic and Alcaraz (seven) the chosen duo in 2026.

That leaves Sinner, Zverev, Taylor Fritz and Alex de Minaur to battle it out in the quarter-finals.

Reigning French Open and US Open champion Zverev faces his Fritz and he has had problems against the American as he leads their ATP head-to-head rivalry 10-6, having won seven matches in a row at one stage

Zverev, though, won their most recent encounter on the grass at Wimbledon in July this year.

Two-time defending champion Sinner takes on De Minaur and he has dominated their H2H as he leads 13-0 with the Australian winning only two sets in those 13 encounters.

The winner of the Zverev-Fritz match will take on Alcaraz in the semi-final while Sinner or De Minaur will face Djokovic.

it means Sinner and Alcaraz can only face each other in the final while Zverev has to potentially get past Fritz, Alcaraz and Sinner to win the title.

Six Kings Slam Draw

Quarter-Finals 21 October

Alexander Zverev v Taylor Fritz

Jannik Sinner v Alex de Minaur

Semi-Finals 22 October

Alexander Zverev/Taylor Fritz vs Carlos Alcaraz

Jannik Sinner/Alex de Minaur v Novak Djokovic

The final will be staged on 24 October with the Friday a rest as ATP rules state that players cannot compete on three days in a row at an exhibition event.

Two matches will take place on the Saturday as there will be a third-place play-off between the two players who lost in the semi-final before the tournament concludes with the showpiece match.