The postponement of the Six Kings Slam appears to have worked in favour of Jannik Sinner as the five-time Grand Slam winner is set to play at the event – that is if the latest tournament posters are anything to go by.

Two-time Six Kings Slam champion Sinner was due to compete at the 2026 edition from 21 to 24 October at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, but he withdrew from the tournament after a knee injury forced him to shut down his season early.

The Italian was replaced by Learner Tien in the line-up as the American was set to play alongside Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev, Alex de Minaur and Taylor Fritz.

But organisers were last week forced to postpone the big-money event due to unrest in the Middle East as Riyadh’s international airport was bombed, with rebels warning of further attacks.

“The decision reflects Riyadh Season’s commitment to ‌delivering sporting events to the highest ‌standards, following an assessment of the organisational and logistical challenges associated with hosting ​the tournament ​and their potential ​impact on the quality of the audience experience,” a statement read.

Jannik Sinner News

The tournament will now take place from 27 to 30 December at the same venue and photos of Sinner have re-appeared in the updated booklet for the rescheduled event with no sign of Tien.

It could, of course, be a mistake from organisers, but it is also highly unlikely they would simply forget to include Tien after announcing him as a replacement.

If Sinner does indeed play, it will be his first event since he defeated Zverev in the Wimbledon final on 12 July and the tournament will no doubt be used to assess his knee ahead of the 2027 season.

After taking an extended break on the back of his title run at the All England Club, Sinner was initially expected to make his comeback at the Cincinnati Open in August, but withdrew from the tournament as well as the US Open.

He later also pulled out of the China Open and Shanghai Masters before eventually confirming he would not play again this year with his focus switching to next year’s Australian Open.

But the latest posts suggest we could well see the Italian in action before the year is over as he looks to win the tournament for a third year in a row.

Sinner defeated Alcaraz in both the 2024 and 2025 finals, collecting a total of $12 million for his efforts as he earned $6m for each title run.

All six participants are guaranteed a $1.5m appearance fee while the tournament winner earns an additional $4m.