After almost a two-month break, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are set to return to the tennis court. Fascinatingly, they will be starting the 2026 season just as they ended a historic 2025 — by playing against each other.
Although their exhibition match in early January will lack the historical significance of their Nitto ATP Finals showdown, here is your complete guide to following the first exhibition match dedicated solely to the two best tennis players in the world.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner Match Guide
Venue and Surface
The exhibition match will take place at the 15,000-capacity INSPIRE Arena in South Korea. It is part of this year’s edition of Hyundai Card’s Super Match. Tennis legends like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Pete Sampras, and Venus Williams have previously participated in this event.
The match will be played on an indoor hard court, as is typical for most exhibition matches.
Date and Time
The match is scheduled for Saturday, 10th January.
The exhibition starts at 4:00 PM local time in South Korea, which is 2:00 AM in New York and 7:00 AM in London.
Where to Watch
The match will be broadcast locally by tvN and its streaming platform TVing. In Italy, it will be live on Sky Italia, while in Spain, it will be broadcast on Movistar Plus.
In the United States, the match is expected to be streamed on Tennis Channel.
Prize Money
The two players are expected to earn a lucrative appearance fee for the match, as is typical for their non-official tennis appearances. While exact figures are unconfirmed, speculation places the payout in the seven-figure range.
Even as an exhibition match, and despite the players having faced each other frequently in recent months, there is no shortage of anticipation or excitement. This exhibition between Alcaraz and Sinner is expected to offer a glimpse, a sort of trailer, of the potential story these two stars will script over the course of 2026.
Main Photo Credit: Robert Deutsch – Imagn Images