It was billed as a modern take on Billie Jean King’s 1973 Battle of the Sexes victory against Bobby Riggs at the Houston Astrodome.
But the match between Belarus’s Aryna Sabalenka and Australia’s Nick Kyrgios failed to live up to the hype – as the women’s world number one lost out to the men’s 671st ranked player on Sunday.
The event at the 17,000-seater Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai was in stark contrast to Ms King’s famous win which changed the course of women’s tennis.
While American Ms King had insisted on playing under normal tennis rules to prove a top female athlete could compete with a male player under the same conditions, some modifications were put in place for the exhibition on Sunday.
Ms Sabalenka’s side of the court was made smaller by 9 per cent to allow for men being faster, there was no changing of ends, and each player was allowed to serve only once in a bid to curb Kyrgios’ power.
But it was still a clear victory for Kyrgios, 30, who won 6-3, 6-3, despite not playing competitively since March due to injury.
Ms Sabalenka, 27, wore a halterneck tennis dress and pink and white trainers, and arrived in a silver trench coat as The Eye Of The Tiger blared out.
Shortly after play got under way, the player, a regular TikTok user, called a 60-second time-out to do the macarena dance. ‘I think it was quite fun, I like to do crazy stuff,’ she said after the match.
Elsewhere, high-profile guests including Brazilian football legend Ronaldo and former England international Peter Crouch appeared to arrive visibly late and were ushered into the stadium in the middle of the second set.
Seemingly unfazed by the defeat, Ms Sabalenka said: ‘I feel like next time when I play him, I already know his tactics, his strengths, his weaknesses, and it’s going to be a better match for sure.’ She added: ‘Playing against a guy is different tennis, everything is much faster.’
Kyrgios said: ‘It was a really hard-fought battle and there were breaks back and forth. I wouldn’t call myself a champ tonight. I think seeing someone as great as Aryna out here and myself, it really is a spectacle and a great step forward for the sport of tennis.’
At the time of Ms King’s match, she was a 29-year-old, ten-time Grand Slam singles champion while Riggs was 55 and a retired Wimbledon champ.
It was a triumph for Ms King and for women’s sport, with interest skyrocketing after her win. The event was turned into a 2017 film starring Emma Stone and Steve Carell.
Many believe yesterday’s event to have been more cynical, with both players signed to the same management company, Evolve. The optics were not helped by Kyrgios’ guilty plea to a charge of common assault for pushing then girlfriend Chiara Passari in 2021 – though there was ultimately no conviction.
