Carlos Alcaraz is in Riyadh for the showdown against Novak Djokovic, and he spoke about his knowledge of the Saudi Arabian capital.
Tennis has been in the Middle East for many years but doesn’t have that long of a tradition in Saudi Arabia. The country has been interested in changing that for a while and is slowly executing a plan to do so.
Almost unlimited funds allow them to stage pretty much anything they want, and the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah recently proved quite successful.
Exhibitions last year and the huge showdown between Djokovic and Alcaraz this year is a continuation of that plan. Expect more to come in the upcoming years with an official event to follow. For now, though, we have Djokovic and Alcaraz, which should be an interesting match in a more loose format.
The Spaniard touched down in Riyadh a few days ago and spoke to the media, admitting that he’s not familiar with the city or country much, though he knows Cristiano Ronaldo plays for local club Al-Nassr.
I don’t know so much about Riyadh, but it’s a place everyone wants to see a little bit. All I know is the team of football: Al-Nassr. That’s all I know. For example, [Aymeric] Laporte is playing there, Cristiano [Ronaldo], obviously, is playing there. So, I know a little bit of Riyadh for the team, but I would like to know Riyadh for other things as well.
They say football connects, which certainly rings true in Alcarazs’s example. Of course, Riyadh, much like the rest of Saudi Arabia, has much more to offer as the country rapidly developed much like the rest of the Middle East.
The match will be played on Wednesday, December 27th, 2023, so stick with us to get all the updates from that match.
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