RECORD REWARD A MAJOR MOTIVATION

Alcaraz explains his participation at Saudi event, where he earned $1.97m over 4 days

PARIS - Spain's Carlos Alcaraz said on Oct 28 the record prize money on offer at the Six Kings Slam in Saudi Arabia earlier in the month was a motivation for playing in the tournament, as the world No. 2 prepares for the Paris Masters. Italian rival Jannik Sinner dismissed claims that he joined the exhibition event for financial rewards, emphasising that he went to Riyadh for the sporting challenge. However, Alcaraz admitted the financial aspect played a role as he earned US$1.5 million (S$1.97 million) over four days in mid-October when finishing runner-up to Sinner.

"I love playing tennis. Most of the time, I don't think about the money. I just play for love or for fun. But you have to be realistic," he said.

"You have to think that you want to earn money and that's it... in Arabia is the highest prize money ever in the history, so that was a good motivation, at least for me."

The Spaniard has not experienced much success at the Paris Masters in recent years, with a quarter-final appearance being his best result. He took on Chile's Nicolas Jarry on Oct 29, with the match starting after press time.