{"id":1435,"date":"2025-12-10T21:00:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T21:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/?p=1435"},"modified":"2025-12-10T21:00:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-10T21:00:10","slug":"aryna-sabalenka-has-put-herself-in-the-line-of-fire-by-accepting-battle-of-the-sexes-showdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/?p=1435","title":{"rendered":"Aryna Sabalenka has put herself in the line of fire by accepting \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 showdown"},"content":{"rendered":"

Aryna Sabalenka <\/a>clearly doesn\u2019t comprehend the level of animosity she has caused by signing up for her \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 clash with Nick Kyrgios<\/a> later this month.<\/p>\n

In a series of interviews to promote her match against Kyrgios on December 28 in Dubai, the world\u2019s No 1 female player looked a little bemused by any suggestion that her participation in this eagerly-awaited match could be damaging to the women\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t agree,\u201d she told the BBC, when asked if she was potentially harming the image of the WTA Tour.<\/a> \u201cI am not putting myself at any risk. We\u2019re there to have fun and bring great tennis. Whoever wins, wins.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so obvious that the man is biologically stronger than the woman, but it\u2019s not about that. This event is only going to help bring women\u2019s tennis to a higher level.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not going to be an easy match for Nick. I\u2019m going to be there competing and showing women are strong, powerful and good entertainment. He\u2019s in a lose-lose situation. I\u2019m in a win-win situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

More Tennis News<\/h2>\n

Why the \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 showdown could have a negative impact on women\u2019s tennis<\/a><\/p>\n

Why \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 showdown between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios is missing the point<\/a><\/p>\n

Sabalenka\u2019s belief that this is merely an event that will draw eyes to tennis that might not normally be following the sport at this time of the year is an alternative argument and it is not without foundation.<\/p>\n

If this was a boxing match between a man and a women, we would all have bigger objections and even if you are not a fan of the \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 tagline on this match, some of the emotions it is stirring up seem pretty lavish.<\/p>\n

This will eventually be an exhibition match between the best female player in the world and an opponent who is effectively retired from professional\u00a0tennis.<\/p>\n

None of us need to be told what would happen if a fully fit Kyrgios from three years ago took on Sabelenka, but this is a much-depleted version of the Aussie and he knows his role in this spectacle is not to humiliate his opponent by blasting her off the court.<\/p>\n

They share a management agency and while we can\u2019t say either player will be playing below their best in a match that will see both players have just one serve and Sabalenka playing on a slightly smaller court, this is not a grudge match that will give us too many new answers.<\/p>\n

If Kyrgios is fit enough, he will have too much power for Sabelenka and the end result will be an entertaining showpiece that does no one any harm.<\/p>\n

Yet listen to the words of Katherine Whittaker from The Tennis Podcast and you get a radically alternative verdict on this match-up.<\/p>\n

\u201cNick Kyrgios is a man that stands for something and that\u2019s not an accident. He is choosing to stand for and represent misogyny,\u201d said Whittaker.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is what Nick Kyrgios will be representing and fighting for in the self-titled Battle of the Sexes. A validation of his belittling of women\u2019s tennis and the way he perceives women and women\u2019s sport of being lesser purely on the basis of brute power.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis event is a dog whistle. It feels like a dog whistle publicity stunt. A symbol of the populist Trumpian age of do-whistles and division and stupidity.\u201d<\/p>\n

This follows up from Whittaker\u2019s previous comments, as she made her position clear on the event.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see absolutely nothing to be gained for women\u2019s tennis \u2013 I see only bleakness,\u201d she told BBC Sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a crass commercial venture and a vehicle for one of the most outspoken misogynists in tennis who just wants attention.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Sabalenka wins, she beats a man who is unfit and has been a total irrelevance for a number of years. What does she win? Nothing. Unless she wins 6-0 6-0, people will only find ammunition to fire at women\u2019s tennis.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Kyrgios wins, he and others of the same mind will claim it legitimises everything he\u2019s already spewing out. It\u2019s disgusting to be giving him a platform.<\/p>\n

\u201cI find it utterly ludicrous this is going to be happening in 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyrgios\u2019 guilty plea in a domestic abuse case in Australia back in 2023 adds to the criticism from those who don\u2019t believe this match should be taking place and amid the negativity, the only winners may be the two players who will pocket a huge fee for their participation in a match that has inspired more negativity than any story in tennis since Jannik Sinner\u2019s doping ban earlier this year.<\/p>\n

The post Aryna Sabalenka has put herself in the line of fire by accepting \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 showdown<\/a> appeared first on Tennis365<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Aryna Sabalenka clearly doesn\u2019t comprehend the level of animosity she has caused by signing up for her \u2018Battle of the Sexes\u2019 clash with Nick Kyrgios later this month. In a series of interviews to promote her match against Kyrgios on December 28 in Dubai, the world\u2019s No 1 female player looked a little bemused by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1435"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1435\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}