Pope Leo XIV jokes that he cannot invite top-ranked tennis player to charity match

OutKick writer Mary Katharine Ham and Democratic strategist Kevin Walling join 'MediaBuzz' to discuss the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope in history, and the U.S. trade deal with the U.K.

A charity tennis match at the Vatican would have a small list of guests – but it wouldn't even include the top men's player in the world.

Pope Leo XIV recently said he considered himself "quite the amateur tennis player," but one notable name would be omitted in this hypothetical match.

During a meeting between the new American pope and international media on Monday, journalists offered to play doubles, or to organize a charity match.

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Jannik Sinner in action against Marcos Giron at the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Jan. 18, 2025. (Mike Frey-Imagn Images)

The pope is all for it, but the top-ranked player would be ousted through no fault of his own: his last name.

"But we can't invite [Jannik] Sinner," the pope cracked.

Sinner has won three grand slams, all of which have come since the 2024 Australian Open, and has quickly turned himself into the best player on the planet.

At age 23, Sinner has skyrocketed through the world rankings, and has won back-to-back grand slams.

But it doesn't sound like he's visiting Pope Leo XIV any time soon.

Pope Leo XIV delivers the Regina Caeli prayer from the main central loggia balcony of St Peter's basilica in the Vatican, on May 11, 2025. (Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images)

In the pope's defense, he does have a halfway decent excuse to exclude Sinner. 

Back in February, he was given a three-month suspension by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) after twice testing positive for a banned anabolic steroid nearly a year ago.