Paris-Bercy criticizes exhibitions after Sinner's withdrawal: "They destabilize the system"

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Everyone closely followed the first edition of the 'Six Kings Slam', enjoying six of the world's best tennis players and acknowledging that Arabia Saudí has entered the world of tennis to grab a slice of the pie. What did the ATP tournaments say about this event? They said nothing, until some consequences ended up forcing a certain executive to speak out. In this case, we are talking about Cedric Pioline, the director of the Rolex Paris Masters 2024. The Frenchman was rubbing his hands together, envisioning a fierce lineup in this final year in Bercy, but last-minute dropouts have left a bitter taste. Jannik Sinner, who was supposed to be the big star, ended up pulling out just hours before his debut.

"It's not for me to judge anyone: each player, including Jannik Sinner, organizes their season in the best way possible... we can even say that, in fact, Jannik is one of those who has had a more logical schedule, not overloading his calendar too much, so he was pretty sure to come and compete here," commented the French director in statements collected by Ubitennis. "As high-level athletes, it is normal for them to become more fragile towards the end of the season; there are always setbacks that can occur during these last months. Bad luck for us? Probably," admits the former world No. 5.

It doesn't take much intelligence to understand what Pioline is getting at: because of a trip to Riyadh to play three matches in four days, in addition to pocketing six million dollars, Sinner ended up having to take charge of his schedule and sacrifice his presence in Paris. The tournament ends up paying the price as it had sold tickets and promoted posters thanks to a player who ultimately didn't step onto the court. The same could be said for Rafa Nadal or Novak Djokovic, who also preferred to be in Saudi Arabia rather than compete this week in the French capital. With conflicts of interest on the table, something we were absolutely sure would happen, it's no surprise that Cedric is on edge.

FORCED TO UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER

And what's the solution? Will the power of the ATP circuit prevail over exhibitions? Considering that players are delighted with these occasional events, and since they are the true protagonists of this swarm, it seems that both powers will have no choice but to understand each other. Whether willingly or by force, they will have to coexist for many years. However, Pioline doesn't hold back and warns about what could happen in the future if exhibitions continue to distribute money and inadvertently sabotage neighboring official tournaments.

“The geopolitics of the circuit involve many things; currently, I can assure you that it's a topic under debate among the Grand Slam tournaments, ATP circuit, and WTA circuit. Today we don't know what will happen in the future, but from my point of view, we will have to be very alert to ensure there is some coherence. The money put on the table by the Saudi exhibition is disruptive, destabilizing the ecosystem and is not very healthy,” points out the Frenchman bluntly, leaving the headline for anyone willing to use it.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, París-Bercy carga contra las exhibiciones tras la baja de Sinner: “Desestabilizan el sistema”