Jannik Sinner has been unstoppable this season, dominating the tennis scene with seven title wins, including two Grand Slams, and leaving his mark in exhibition events like the Six Kings Slam. But it’s not just his winning streak that has people talking—it’s his recent comment about that massive paycheck from the tournament. Fans have been buzzing, and now, Alexander Bublik has jumped in, delivering what seems to be a sly dig at the Italian star.
The Kazhak tennis star faced a baffling defeat against Holger Rune in the second round of the Paris Masters. However, he kept his spirits high and engaged in an interview with Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj after the match and deliberated upon a lot of factors including his racquet smashes, his win and loss scenarios, and other emotional moments. But what caught the attention of the community was his subtle jibe at Sinner.
In the interview, Bublik was quizzed about his victories this year. “It’s been a successful year for you. You’ve had a ton of wins, put some good money into the bank account too. It’s been a very good year,” Amritraj said. Bublik has a win-loss ratio of 25-25 this season and has earned $1,481,159, through his victories, per ATP Tour.com. But the Kazhak player was quick to respond to this question with a veiled jibe at Sinner.
Speaking in the interview, Bublik responded, “Like Jannik Sinner said, money is not the thing.” Remember, this comes after the Italian dynamo opened up about his victory at the exhibition event in Riyadh where he won $6 Million. In an interaction with Eurosports, the World No. 1 earlier said, “I don’t play for money. It’s very simple. Of course it’s a nice prize and everything. For me, I went there because there were possibly the six best players in the world and then you can measure yourself with them. And it was also a nice event for me. The money is important but not that much.” But interestingly, the prize money was not just hefty, but also constituted a major portion of Sinner’s earnings.
The prize money represented 50% of Sinner’s total 2024 on-court winnings of $12,032,935 this year and greatly boosted the player’s finances. Besides, the tournament also awarded a pay cheque of $1.5 Million to all the players who participated in the tournament even though they faced defeats. However, the major reason why Sinner’s statement has been receiving some flak is that the tournament consists of no points and has not been officially recognized by the ATP. But it is not just Bublik who seems to be taking some potshots at Sinner and several others seem to discredit his remarks.
Carlos Alcaraz was one of the six players who participated in the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh. While he failed to clinch the title, he returned with a hefty sum of $1.5 Million. And now, the Spanish star seems to be taking a veiled jibe at Sinner and discrediting his remark about not playing for money.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the Paris Masters, Alcaraz said that money was indeed a special reason for him to participate in the tournament. “If I say I went there just for fun or to play and forget the money, I’m gonna lie. Most of the time I don’t think about the money. But you have to be realistic. You have to think that you want to earn money and that’s it. In Arabia is the highest prize money ever in history, so that was a good motivation, at least for me.” While this statement reflects Alcaraz’s perspectives, it also stands contrary to what Sinner said about the earnings.
For now, it would be interesting to see if Jannik Sinner continues to face such remarks in his recent statement, or if will come to an end soon. Will the Italian come out to issue a clarification? Well, that remains to be seen.
