Sabalenka vs Kyrgios: Before the Battle of the Sexes, the Battle of Visions
One side calls it progress; the other calls it a stolen, hollow imitation. Sunday’s clash in Dubai between world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and maverick Nick Kyrgios resurrects the iconic 1973 gender face-off with a digital-age twist – but the fiercest fight is happening off the court.
2025 Battle of sexes
The professional tennis landscape has been polarized these past few days by the revival of the Battle of the Sexes, the upcoming exhibition at the Dubai Coca-Cola Arena. On Sunday, December 28, 2025, at 8:00 PM local time (17:00 CET), world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka will face ATP enigma Nick Kyrgios in this vague replica of the 1973 meeting between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs but, if you read articles and social media lately, you understand it’s far from it.
While marketed as a boundary-pushing spectacle, the match has ignited a fierce debate regarding the integrity of women’s sports, the Coachella-fication of tennis, and even the ethics of intellectual property. Patrick Mouratoglou has notably claimed the concept was effectively lifted from his own strategic plans for the UTS Tour.
Dubai Exhibition Overview: The Mechanics of the Match
To bridge the biological gap in power and lateral speed, the organizers – the Evolve agency, which represents both athletes – have implemented three specific, data-driven modifications.
First, court dimensions: Sabalenka’s side of the court has been reduced by 9 percent, a figure Evolve claims reflects the average speed differential in professional movement. Second, the serving rule: both players are restricted to a single serve per point, effectively neutralizing the primary weapon of Nick Kyrgios – his world-class first serve – to force more baseline rallies. This rule is a direct carryover from the UTS format. Third, the format: a best-of-three sets encounter, featuring a 10-point championship tie-break in lieu of a full third set.
Mouratoglou vs Evolve: A Stolen Vision?
One of the most vocal critics of the event’s genesis is Patrick Mouratoglou. In a recent episode of the Off Court with Greg podcast hosted by Greg Rusedski on December 23, 2025, the coach and UTS founder expressed deep frustration, claiming the concept was stolen from his own blueprints.
“I cannot say I’m not convinced by this match because to bring it back was my idea,” Mouratoglou told Rusedski. “I pitched it to the guys who kinda stole it this time… It is frustrating to see promoters seize the idea for a simple marketing one-shot without the structural innovation and rules we imagined to make it a real sporting format.”
For Mouratoglou, the Dubai event is a hollow imitation of the tennis entertainment revolution he has attempted to spearhead. Tennis Majors understands that the match was originally planned to take place in Hong Kong alongside the event that occurred there in late October 2025.
Media Backlash: Cynical or Innovative?
The mainstream sporting press has been equally unforgiving. Writing for The Guardian on December 27, Tumaini Carayol described the clash as one of the most inane tennis events ever conceived. He argues that the event is an own goal for Sabalenka, suggesting that the spectacle risks belittling the legitimate progress of the WTA.
Carayol noted: “There is no denying the attention this has generated. The event has been picked up by the BBC, and Sabalenka was ushered onto The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, a stage usually only accessible to tennis players immediately after a US Open triumph. It would not be a surprise to see the Dubai Coca-Cola Arena’s 17,000 seats mostly filled. Yet, for all the glamour, the event feels regressive. It frames women’s tennis not as a standalone professional discipline, but as a diminished version of the men’s game that requires a 9% handicap to function. It is a cynical bid for attention that offers a spectacle of artificiality rather than a contest of excellence.”
“By accepting these rules, Sabalenka admits implicitly that her sport, as it is, cannot compete, which is a disastrous message for young players. Instead of celebrating athletic excellence, we are offered a choreography where the man must apologize for being stronger and the woman must rely on a geometric crutch. It is a show that, far from breaking barriers, only highlights physical demarcation lines with a crude highlighter.”
Technically, the validity of the match is also under fire. Former world number 5 and now tennis pundit Daniela Hantuchova questioned the logic on Tennis Channel: “If Nick serves at 100%, there is no match… If he slows down, it’s not sport; it’s a choreography.”
Note that the 1973 Battle of the Sexes in Houston was played between a reigning world number 1 and a former champion aged 55. For a more accurate contemporary duplication of physical abilities, it would be more appropriate if Sabalenka met a legend like Andre Agassi or Pete Sampras in their fifties rather than an active top-tier professional.
Commercial Reality and Digital Engagement
Despite the negative reception in traditional circles, commercial metrics tell a different story. Pre-event engagement on TikTok and Instagram has surpassed every ATP or WTA 500 final of 2025 based on a study by Meltwater. For Kyrgios and Sabalenka, the match represents a massive payday and a chance to bypass traditional gatekeepers.
Nick Kyrgios defended the event’s entertainment-first approach during his December 9 interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored: “Tennis is so traditional and stuck in its ways; it’s 2025, but the establishment still thinks it’s the 1920s. We need more than just baseline rallies. We need energy, we need the NBA-style show, and we need characters that actually mean something to the kids scrolling on TikTok. If you aren’t evolving, you’re dying, and this match is about showing the world that tennis can still be the biggest show on earth.”
The bar is high; if the show doesn’t reach it, criticism will not end.
Where to watch the Battle of sexes
- United Kingdom: Live broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The special program begins at 3:45 PM GMT, hosted by Clare Balding with commentary by Andrew Cotter.
- France: Available on Tennis Channel France (accessible via the L’Équipe website or the Molotov application). Eurosport is also expected to provide coverage via the Discovery+ platform.
- Spain: Live on Movistar+ (Channel 7) starting at 5:00 PM CET.
- United States: Live coverage on Tennis Channel starting at 11:00 AM ET / 8:00 AM PT.
- Australia: Broadcast on Stan Sport. Due to the time difference, coverage begins at 3:00 AM AEDT on Monday, December 29.
- India: Exclusive digital streaming on the SonyLIV app and website. No linear television broadcast is planned for the region.
- Latin America: Live on ESPN and the Disney+ streaming platform.
- International (Alternative): The Bet365 streaming service will offer the match live in its “Live” section for users with an active account and a minimum deposit.
