Former British No 1 finds a brutal word to describe Sabalenka vs Kygrios ‘Battle of the Sexes’ clash
Aryna Sabalenka’s showdown against Nick Kyrgios is set to be one of the most-watched tennis matches of 2025 as their ‘Battle of the Sexes’ clash continues to create huge debate, former British No 1 Greg Rusedski suggesting the contest is little more than a gimmick.
Sabalenka and Kyrgios are set to lock horns in Dubai on December 28, with the world No 1 female player set to compete on a smaller court than her male rival in a match that will see both players operating with just one serve.
Now Rusedski has claimed those rule changes have diluted the impact of the match, as he would have preferred to see a straight battle between the best female player in the game and a rival who has struggled to get on court due to injury issues since his appearance in the 2022 Wimbledon final.
“For it to be a real Battle of the Sexes, the court dimensions have to be the same and it has to be tennis,” said Rusedski, speaking on the second episode of the Off Court with Greg podcast, which will be released on Monday.
“It could be one set, but it has to be two serves. The court size has to be the same because that’s the way tennis is played.
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“Is this more of an exhibition and is Kyrgios going to take her along or is it going to be a real battle out there where they go toe-to-toe properly? We don’t know.
“Also, Kyrgios hasn’t really been on tour for three years, so we don’t know how that is going to work out if he is playing three full sets.
“There are three questions here. Yes you like it, no you don’t like it or is it a gimmick… and my opinion is I find it gimmicky.
“We have equal pay at the Slams now and that is 100 per-cent right. I would like to see that at the Masters series [WTA 1000 events] as well.”
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The decision give both players just one serve is designed to limit the power advantage Kyrgios will have over Sabalenka, but Rusedski fears that rule change may backfire on the Belarusian star.
“We know that Sabalenka has had problems on her serve in the past, so giving her one serve may be difficult,” he added. “Her second serve can be a little bit dodgy at time and there’s going to be a lot of stress in there because all eyeballs are on this event.
“Being in Dubai, the ball sails around a bit there, so that will be tough.
“I think this will be entertaining, but do we need it? I’m not sure.
“Yes, it will bring new eyes onto the sport, but if it doesn’t go well, it could create some damage.”
World No 12 Casper Ruud also appeared on the Off Court with Greg podcast, as he suggested the Battle of the Sexes match was “only for show”.
“If you really want to do it, you should have fair playing grounds,” said the Norwegian. “If it’s not the same court on both sides and two serves, it’s not the real deal.”
READ MORE: Nick Kyrgios accused of ‘representing misogyny’ in scathing Battle of the Sexes swipe
