Alcaraz and Sinner started their season in South Korea today, but the two tennis stars clashed over the post-2000 generation twins.

As the new season’s tour competition approaches its peak, the male post-2000 tennis twins Alcaraz and Sinner are finally set to make their debut in the second week of the new year.

The Spaniard and the Italian will officially begin their campaign today at 3 PM Beijing time in Incheon, South Korea, starting with an exhibition match to warm up for the upcoming Australian Open.

When news broke that Alcaraz and Sinner’s 2026 season “first match” would kick off in South Korea, many wondered what charm South Korea held to attract these post-2000 tennis stars from Europe to start their season there. The most widely circulated explanation was that South Korea used financial incentives to persuade the twins to accept the invitation and travel together.

Now, with the exhibition match set to begin at 4 PM Korean time (3 PM Beijing time) today, the media has revealed exactly how much South Korea paid Alcaraz and Sinner for this event.

The two players earned a staggering 2 million euros just in appearance fees, which converts to more than 16.24 million RMB—an astronomical sum.

Fans and netizens applauded South Korea’s generosity, noting that the Australian Open singles champions earn about 2.38 million euros each; just having Alcaraz and Sinner play an exhibition match for such a fee explains why these post-2000 stars are willing to travel so far at the start of the year. “Money’s power is truly unbeatable.”

The exhibition match will be played as best of three sets. Although it’s a non-ranking event, fans and netizens expect Alcaraz and Sinner to compete seriously, treating it like a tour-level match with real intensity.

Their reasoning is that besides the large payment from South Korea and the pressure to perform well publicly, this exhibition serves as the best preparation for the Australian Open.

Some say that since neither Alcaraz nor Sinner is participating in early-season tour events, missing this Korean exhibition would mean losing a key opportunity to gauge their opponents’ tactical changes and physical condition. Both the Italian and the Spaniard have clear goals for this year’s Australian Open: the former aims for a three-peat, while the latter hopes to complete a career Grand Slam with the season’s first major.

At the press conference for the “Hyundai Car Super Match” exhibition, Alcaraz and Sinner appeared in high spirits, smiling happily throughout the event.

During an interview, the Spaniard excitedly revealed his wish to partner with Sinner in doubles, with one condition: “I want to play forehand, he plays backhand, but it depends on if my partner agrees.”

“We haven’t really discussed it before, but imagining playing side by side in a different role sounds fun,” Sinner responded, prompting many to eagerly call for them to start doubles at this year’s Australian Open, curious if their near-invincible singles dominance would translate to doubles power.

While Alcaraz and Sinner get along well, on the other side, tennis veterans Tsonga and Moratoglou have clashed directly over these post-2000 stars.

The dispute stems from the topic of how Alcaraz and Sinner have nearly monopolized men’s tennis in recent years!

“I want to see Alcaraz or Sinner, on their way to a Grand Slam title, beat Del Potro, Murray, Djokovic, and Federer in the semifinals, then defeat Nadal in the final,” Tsonga said, implying that the current men’s tennis scene lacks players who can truly challenge Alcaraz and Sinner, making them unbeatable in majors.

Many supported Tsonga’s view, believing he spoke the truth without issue because it reflects the current reality.

However, Moratoglou disagreed, rejecting the notion that men’s tennis competition is weak and that others cannot challenge Alcaraz and Sinner, emphasizing that “Draper, Rune, De Minaur, Fritz, Shelton, and Aliassime are all very strong players.”

In fact, Moratoglou even took a jab at Tsonga, saying, “I don’t think you can beat those players.”

Though the debate was reasonable and passionate, turning it into personal attacks upset many, including Tsonga, who fired back at Moratoglou angrily: “You’re just a coach; you’ll never understand what it’s like to be a tennis player on the court. You’re not the best person to teach me about top-level competition.”(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Moonlit River’s Starry Sky)