Kyrgios bests Sabalenka in 'Battle of the Sexes'

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Nick Kyrgios won the latest version of the “Battle of the Sexes” in tennis, beating top-ranked women’s player Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 6-3 in an exhibition match that represented light entertainment rather than another landmark moment for gender equality.

There was laughing and joking between the players, some under-arm serves, over-the-top grunting on shots, and even some dancing from Sabalenka during a timeout to entertain the crowd at the 17,000-seat Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai — where the most expensive tickets sold for approaching $800.

Kyrgios, the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up who has played only six tour-level matches in the past three years because of wrist and knee injuries, appeared to play within himself at times and faced the disadvantage of Sabalenka’s side of the court being nearly 10% smaller in an attempt to level the playing field. The players were given only one serve per point, rather than two.

Kyrgios was drenched in sweat by the time he clinched victory off his third match point and the pair were all smiles when they embraced at the net.

Kyrgios acknowledged feeling nervous and having to “strap in.”

“I think this is a great stepping-stone for the sport of tennis,” the Australian said.

Sabalenka said the match was good prep for next season, with the Australian Open coming up in January, and would like to play Kyrgios again to exact “revenge.”

“Really enjoyed the show,” she said, “and I feel like next time I play him I’m going to know the tactics, his strengths and his weaknesses, and it’s going to be a better match, for sure.”

The so-called “Battle of the Sexes” was a name borrowed from the 1973 match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, which King won in straight sets in the Houston Astrodome and took place amid King’s efforts to start a female tour and get equal pay in tennis.

Fifty-two years on and the latest iteration had no real wider cultural significance. Instead, Sabalenka and Kyrgios — members of the same agency, Evolve, that arranged the exhibition — just wanted to put on a show, engage a younger audience and make some money.

Kyrgios might be regarded as a controversial choice to play in such a match, given he pleaded guilty to shoving a former girlfriend to the ground during an argument in 2021 — he escaped conviction on a charge of common assault — and has previously expressed his opposition to equal pay in tennis.