Rafael Nadal has addressed talks of “sportswashing” in Saudi Arabia after taking home £1.15million for playing two exhibition matches in Riyadh.

The Spaniard was part of last week’s Six Kings Slam – a lucrative exhibition tournament which also saw Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune compete for the title.

Earlier this year, Nadal also signed a deal to become the new ambassador of the Saudi Tennis Federation. He is set to open an academy in the Kingdom.

After getting involved in football and golf, Saudi Arabia has been making moves in tennis. The Public Investment Fund already has partnerships with both the ATP and WTA. The Next Gen ATP Finals is held in Jeddah and, from next month, the WTA Finals will head to Riyadh.

The Saudis also found a way to get six of the sport’s top male players to be part of Riyadh Season – a series of entertainment and sporting events. Nadal, Djokovic and co. were part of the inaugural Six Kings Slam.

Every player got £1.15m just for turning up and competing while the champion, Jannik Sinner, banked £4.6m. It was Nadal’s penultimate event before his retirement and he lost to Alcaraz and Djokovic across his two matches before receiving a gold racket as a parting gift.

After his appearance in Riyadh, the 22-time Major champion addressed sportswashing concerns in the nation. “I say one thing that is simple, and that is that I understand the controversy,” Nadal told AS.

“What happens is that there comes a certain moment when you can be in one place or another, based on your opinion. I respect all opinions, as long as mine are also respected.”

While Nadal openly admitted he was paid for taking part in the tennis exhibition in the country, he explained why he was willing to work with the Saudis. The former world No. 1 continued: “Do they pay me to come here? Yes. But we must not lose perspective.

“You come here and what do you think? Are you doing good or bad? Because the only problem in the end is that you get paid for it. Because, really, by coming here, you help the country.

“And those who speak in such a drastic way against the country, very well. So, what do you want? For them to continue being bad, for them to continue keeping the country locked up, with more inequality? There is only one reality.”