Daniil Medvedev may have been thumped by Jannik Sinner, but he’s certainly richer for the experience.
The Russian tennis star was competing in the Six Kings Slam – a lucrative new event taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Medvedev earned a huge amount for just over an hour’s work in Saudi ArabiaGetty
Medvedev was facing Sinner in the tournament’s quarter-final but was eliminated with a 6-0 6-3 defeat.
He was only on court for 68 minutes, but such is the lucrative nature of the new tournament, Sinner won’t be too disheartened.
Incredibly, Medvedev made £1,155,312 for his last-eight appearance, a stunning amount when it’s broken down.
That equates to £16,743 per minute, or £278.82 per second.
The tournament sees six competitors taking part in the exhibition event with Sinner and Medvedev joined by Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
Each of the six competitors are guaranteed almost £1.2million in prize money, with the winner of the event taking home £4.5million.
That prize is the largest in tennis history and almost double the prize money given to a grand slam winner.
As it is a non-ATP-sanctioned event, players will not earn any ranking points.
Reflecting on his win, Sinner said: “It was a very good performance considering I arrived just a couple days ago, not even. And I only had one practice session,” said Sinner.
“It’s obviously a very nice moment for me. I worked very hard in my very young career to be in this position and this is from many, many years of work.
Medvedev was heavily beaten by Sinner in the exhibition event in RiyadhGetty
“This is what I love about being a tennis player, now I can enjoy every moment.”
Medvedev reached the final of the Australian Open earlier this year, while also reaching the quarter-finals of at Wimbledon.
The one-time grand slam winner is currently ranked at number five in the world, while Sinner is guaranteed to end the year as men’s singles number one after beating Djokovic in the Shanghai Masters final on Sunday.
The pair will now face off once again in Saudi Arabia, with the winner set to face either Alcaraz or Nadal for a shot at the £4.5million windfall.
