Aryna Sabalenka has revealed she wants to play Nick Kyrgios again as she expressed her desire to exact “revenge” for her defeat to the Australian.
Former ATP world No 13 Kyrgios triumphed 6-3, 6-3 against WTA world No 1 Sabalenka in an exhibition showdown billed as the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ in Dubai on December 28.
Both players were limited to having one serve, while Sabalenka’s side of the court was 9% smaller than Kyrgios’, with organisers Evolve claiming that data shows female players move about 9% slower than men on average.
Sabalenka was broken in four of her five service games in the opening set, but she took a 3-1 lead in the second and had a break point to go up 4-1 before Kyrgios turned it around to seal a straight-set win.
The match would have been decided by a 10-point tiebreak had a third set been required.
Sabalenka has made it clear that she has the appetite for a rematch and argued it would be more even if she could have two serves.
“I think I would definitely do it again. I love revenges and I don’t like to leave it the way it is,” said the four-time Grand Slam champion.
“And I think for the next match we’ll come up with a different format because before the match, I didn’t realise that I have to adjust as well and it was a bit tricky for me as well.
Tennis News
Hate flowing Aryna Sabalenka’s way is not justified as attention seekers cash in
“I think that I would still keep the full court for Nick, but I would take two serves, that would even our level a lot more.
“I always say that when you are losing, you are learning, and I learned a lot about his game. I would do it again.
“Now I know better Nick as a player and as a person as well, so I feel like I know how to play against him. We will do it again, I need the revenge.”
The 27-year-old Belarusian continued: “I think it’s really important for tennis to keep it interesting, keep it fresh, keep it new, keep it fun.
“I’m happy that I was able to challenge him and make him work and make him physically get tired and mentally also get tight.
“I saw that and I felt really excited to see a man getting tight and going for his full game. It was a really cool experience.”
Kyrgios responded to a tweet discussing a potential rematch by saying “I’M IN.”
Want more from Tennis365? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for tennis coverage you can trust.
The post Aryna Sabalenka calls for Nick Kyrgios ‘Battle of the Sexes’ rematch – but with one rule change appeared first on Tennis365.
Leave a Reply