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Kyrgios, the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up who has played only six
tour-level matches in the last three years because of wrist and
knee injuries, appeared to play within himself at times and
faced the disadvantage of Sabalenka’s side of the court being
nearly 10% smaller in an attempt to level the playing field. The
players were only given one serve per point, rather than two.
Kyrgios was drenched in sweat by the time he clinched victory
off his third match point and the pair were all smiles when they
embraced at the net.
Kyrgios acknowledged feeling nervous and having to “strap in.”
“I think this is a great stepping stone for the sport of
tennis,” the Australian said.
Sabalenka said the match was good prep for next season, with the
Australian Open coming up in January, and would like to play
Kyrgios again to exact “revenge.”
“Really enjoyed the show," she said, "and I feel like next time
I play him I'm going to know the tactics, his strengths and his
weaknesses, and it's going to be a better match, for sure.”
The so-called “Battle of the Sexes” was a name borrowed from the
1973 match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, which King
won in straight sets in the Houston Astrodome and took place
amid King’s efforts to start a female tour and get equal pay in
tennis.
Fifty-two years on and the latest iteration had no real wider
cultural significance. Instead, Sabalenka and Kyrgios — members
of the same agency, Evolve, that arranged the exhibition — just
wanted to put on a show, engage a younger audience and make some
money.
Kyrgios might be regarded as a controversial choice to play in
such a match, given he pleaded guilty to shoving a former
girlfriend to the ground during an argument in 2021 — he escaped
conviction on a charge of common assault — and has previously
expressed his opposition to equal pay in tennis.
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