World No1 Aryna Sabalenka will take on former men’s Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios as the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match is resurrected.
The exhibition, which will be held at the Coca Cola Arena in Dubai on December 28, was confirmed on Tuesday.
It will be the fourth time a professional men’s player has faced a professional women’s player, following on from two encounters between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, with Riggs beating King in the first match in 1973.
He did so in straight sets, but King exacted her revenge to conjure a shock victory in the second later on that year, with a global television audience that reached 90 million viewers.
Americans Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova took each other on in the most recent rendition back in 1992, with Connors emerging the two-set victor.
Now, the idea has been brought to the surface once more, and men’s world No652 Kyrgios, the Australian, will play Sabalenka, the four-time Grand Slam champion in the Middle East.
Rules and format
27-year-old Sabalenka claimed her fourth major title at the US Open back in September, while Kyrgios has played just five matches this calendar year having struggled with a wrist injury.
According to BBC Sport, the exhibition will keep the previous best-of-three sets format, and there will be a 10–point championship tiebreak should a third set be required.
There will also be modifications made to the court, with Sabalenka’s side set to be smaller than Kyrgios’.
That comes as a result of Evole, the event organisers, stating that female players move nine per cent more slowly than men, and as a result, Sabalenka’s side of the court will be 9% smaller than her opponent’s.
Additionally, both players will be limited to one serve each - instead of the traditional two - in order to limit Kyrgios’ power advantage.
The 30-year-old Australian has the eighth-most aces across the men’s game throughout his career, although Sabalenka herself has hit the second-fastest serve by a woman ever, smashing down a 133mph ball at the WTA Elite Trophy back in 2018.
There will be no ranking points available for either player with neither the ATP nor the WTA sanctioning the contest, while appearance fees and prize money have not yet been disclosed.
