There are major doubts over the 2026 edition of the Six Kings Slam in Saudi Arabia following a deadly attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Saturday.

The third edition of the exhibition Six Kings Slam – which will feature Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev – is due to run from 21-24 October at the anb arena in Riyadh, but the tense situation in the Arab country could result in the tournament being moved, rescheduled or cancelled.

At least 12 people were killed and more than 300 were injured when militants struck the international airport in Saudi Arabia’s capital, resulting in all flights from the city being diverted while the Saudi civil aviation authority halted airport operations temporarily.

And the situation remained tense on Sunday as Yemen’s Houthis – who claimed responsibility for the attack – warned airlines and passengers not to use Saudi Arabian airports as “they are potential targets and sites for operations by our forces”.

ATP News

Novak Djokovic could reach a new prize money milestone after confirming schedule

Carlos Alcaraz opens up on his new look as he sends out ominous warning to his rivals

Organisers of the Six Kings Slam are yet to make an official announcement with the tournament set to get underway in just over a week on Wednesday 21 October with two quarter-final matches.

Reigning French Open and US Open champion Zverev is scheduled to face Taylor Fritz while Learner Tien will take on Alex de Minaur.

Tien was a late replacement for world No 1 Jannik Sinner as the five-time Grand Slam winner pulled out of the event earlier in the week after he was forced to end his 2026 season early due to a knee injury.

If the tournament does indeed go ahead, a new champion will be crowned as Sinner won the event in 2024 and 2025, collecting a total of $12 million for his efforts across the two tournaments.

Each player is guaranteed a $1.5m appearance fee while the last man standing earns an extra $4.5m for a total of $6m.

Seven-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz and 24-time major champion Djokovic received byes into the semi-finals, with the former facing the winner of the Zverev-Fritz encounter while Djokovic will take on either Tien or De Minaur.

Alcaraz, Zverev, De Minaur, Fritz and Tien are still in action at the Shanghai Masters this week and they were no doubt planning on flying directly to Saudi Arabia after the tournament.

Djokovic lost in the second round and has most likely flown home first before heading to the Middle East early next week for the exhibition event.