John Isner thinks the logistical part of the Saudi Masters is "completely ridiculous," as the former American tennis star suspects the Saudis simply accepted what was offered to them and plan to throw massive amounts of money at players such as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
What had been rumored for more than a year became official last week when the ATP announced that a Masters tournament would be staged in Saudi Arabia from 2028. Since it won't replace any of the existing tournaments from the 1000-category, one of the first things that many wondered was about the event's date. While nothing is confirmed, the general belief is that the Saudi Masters will take place before the Australian Open or be staged in February.
There was another thing that stood out about the Saudi 1000-level tournament - it will be non-mandatory and feature 56 players. If a tournament is non-mandatory,
Isner: You'd think that there are going to be appearance fees under the table for the top guys to show up
"Why would Jannik and Carlos Alcaraz play a non-mandatory 1000 after the Australian Open? Why would they play it? Well, are they holding a stick? Are they going to offer appearance fees, or they cant? Thats what I think. So, you would logically think that there are going to be appearance fees under the table for these guys to show up and play. Its completely ridiculous. There are way more questions than answers right now. It makes no sense. But it does feel like they just agreed to it and have nothing worked out," Isner said on the Nothing Major Show.
When the Saudi Masters news broke out, Andy Roddick was one of the first to react through his podcast. When doing so, Roddick pretty much said the same thing as Isner - he believes the Saudis will try to lure the biggest names of the game to their tournament by offering them huge appearance fees.
