Sabalenka greets Kyrgios (left) after the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ event. Yonhap News
A match between the world number one in women’s professional tennis (WTA) and the world number 671 in men’s professional tennis (ATP). There was harsh criticism about the match between Arina Sabalenka (Belarus) and Nick Kyrgios (Australia).
The two competed in the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match held at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the 29th (Korean time). Kyrgios defeated Sabalenka with a set score of 2-0 (6-3 6-3).
On the 30th, the British media ‘Daily Mail’ published an article titled “Olympic athlete criticizes Sabalenka for ‘causing large-scale arrogant harm to female athletes’ after gender confrontation.” This is criticism from George Parker, the Australian women’s hockey representative at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
“This match was played on a converted court in Dubai and did nothing for the women athletes who have fought for equal compensation, respect and opportunity,” Parker said. He then criticized, “Rather, it has reinforced the lazy narrative that female athletes are inherently inferior to men.”
In this game, Sabalenka used a court that was 9% smaller than Kyrgios. Also, there was no second serve in any of the matches to limit serve opportunities advantageous to Kyrgios.
Nevertheless, Sabalenka did not win a single set. Sabalenka won four major tournaments and is currently ranked No. 1 in the WTA, but was unable to defeat Kyrgios, ranked 671st on the ATP Tour. Of course, Kyrgios is a strong player who once rose to 13th place, including runner-up at Wimbledon in 2022.
Sabalenka’s performance. Yonhap News
“Kyrios wasn’t in the best condition,” Parker said, adding, “It’s not a great victory for feminism to beat a man who doesn’t train or play and doesn’t take sports seriously.” Kyrgios’ last match on the ATP Tour was the ATP Masters held in Miami, USA in March.
In particular, Parker threw a fastball, saying, “There was no winner in this game, except Sabalenka’s bank account.” It is said that the pride of female sportspeople was destroyed in order to collect participation fees.
This match was the fourth tennis gender battle in history. In 1973, male player Bobby Riggs (USA) defeated female player Margaret Court (Australia) 2-0 (6-2 6-1), and in the same year, Billie Jean King (USA) defeated Riggs 3-0 (6-4 6-3 6-3). In 1992, male player Jimmy Connors defeated Martina Navratilova (USA) 2-0 (7-5 6-2).
Since it was an event match in 1992, the rules were different from regular matches. Connors had only one chance to serve, and a handicap that was wider on Connors’ court was applied. In 1973, the age difference was large, with King being 29 years old and Riggs being 55 years old.
Kyrios’ game. Yonhap News
On this day, it was an event match aimed at promoting tennis in Gyeonggi Province. American media outlet ESPN said about the match between Sabalenka and Kyrgios, “There was laughter and jokes throughout the match,” and “there were under-arm serves, exaggerated actions, and even Sabalenka dancing to entertain the crowd during timeouts.”
However, criticism is also being raised that it has destroyed the dignity of tennis. British media outlet The Guardian pointed out, “It was a disappointing match that vacillated uneasily between exhibitionism, trickery, and blatant circus.” The British BBC also reported, “There is a backlash against the game, which is being called a ‘laughter’ among fans,” and “some opinions have been raised that this event ‘cheapens sports and fundamentally betrays the legacy of Billie Jean King.'”
After the match, Kyrgios said, “I had to brace myself,” and added, “This match is important for the sport of tennis.” Sabalenka also said, “I really enjoyed this show,” and emphasized, “If I meet Kyrgios again next time, I will have a much better match because I will have a better understanding of his tactics, strengths, and weaknesses.”
