Battle of the Sexes: An exhibition that helped tennis none; hurt women's sport more
The modern 'Battle of the Sexes' exhibition between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios was a detrimental circus act for women's tennis. Despite rigged rules, the match highlighted a lack of competitive substance, contrasting sharply with Billie Jean King's impactful 1973 win over Bobby Riggs that shaped the formation of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and paved way for equality.
Four-time major champion Aryna Sabalenka reacts during the Battle of the Sexes match against Nick Kyrgios. (AP)
NEW DELHI: When Billie Jean King played - and beat - Bobby Riggs in the iconic Battle of the Sexes in 1973, women's tennis was struggling for relevance. The complexion of the sport is much different now.
There is equal pay at all four majors. But back then it was different, with that win for Billie Jean King playing a crucial role in the formation of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), the governing body for women's tennis. Unfortunately, the modern rendition of the Battle of the Sexes, between women's World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and men's World No. 671 Nick Kyrgios, was an own goal that hurt women's tennis and veered towards a circus act.Kyrgios, who has won just one competitive match since the end of 2022, triumphed 6-3, 6-3 against four-time grand slams winner Sabalenka with the likes of Ronaldo, Kaka, Peter Crouch and more celebrities watching on. Without getting into the men vs women biological debate, Kyrgios -- despite looking absolutely exhausted from the middle of the first set onward -- cantered to victory on the back of some nifty kick serves, lots of spin and more consistent groundstrokes.
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“It was a really tough match,” Kyrgios said in the on-court interview after. “She is a hell of a competitor. It could have gone either way.”From the very onset, the rules for the contest in Dubai were comical. In an attempt to level the playing field between Kyrgios, a former Wimbledon finalist, and Sabalenka, the Belarusian's side of the court was 9% smaller, and both players were limited to one serve per point.In practice, these rules looked bizarre. Sabalenka's shortened court, by 3.5 feet, meant she was standing well behind the baseline while serving, to make it resemble a regular court.
Additionally, the court's proportions would have been challenging even for professional athletes, as was clear by Sabalenka's rising unforced error count.
Aryna Sabalenka walks to the court for her Battle of the Sexes match against Nick Kyrgios in Dubai. (AP)
Sabalenka walked onto the court between the fans, with "Eye of the Tiger" playing in the background, wearing a silver sparkly jacket as if a WWE superstar entering the ring. Throughout the exhibition, she did entertain as one would expect of a WWE wrestler. She smiled, she laughed, and she did the Macarena during a time-out in the second set.
