Field Level Media
28 Dec 2025, 00:35 GMT+10
(Photo credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images)
Aryna Sabelenka promises complete confidence. Nick Kyrgios offers uncertainty.
In that sense, it will be business as usual when Sabalenka faces Kyrgios in an updated 'Battle of the Sexes' match Sunday at Dubai.
Once warmups are complete, though, it will be anything goes.
'This event is really unpredictable,' Sabalenka, 27, said Saturday. 'I don't know what to expect and that's what I love because this is the feeling that you chase when you play sport.'
Kyrgios promises similar chaos, which is hardly a surprise, given his personality.
'If you know me, you know how unpredictable I am, but I'm as well prepared as I possibly could be,' Kyrgios, 30, said. 'I feel like I'm going to win.'
In the matchup between good friends, Sabalenka is coming off a year in which the Belarus native won her second consecutive U.S. Open women's title and the fourth grand slam title of her career. Kyrgios is trying to bounce back from injuries that limited him to five singles matches in 2025.
More than focus on the woman vs. man aspect to the match, both are trying to promote the must-see element for their sport.
'It's great training for me and a great message to the girls out there -- I hope they will see how strong and tough I am by playing against a guy,' Sabalenka said.
The match also will serve as a tuneup for Kyrgios' comeback from ankle and knee issues in recent years. The Australia native is set to play in the upcoming Brisbane International as a wild-card entry.
Once No. 13 in the world in 2016, Kyrgios enters the new season ranked No. 673. Sabalenka is No. 1 in the women's rankings.
'I haven't won a grand slam (title) but I've walked out in a grand slam final,' said Kyrgios, who lost to Novak Djokovic in the 2022 Wimbledon final. 'This is something completely different, I don't know how my body or my mind will react.
'It's a completely different energy. I'm going to bring something different, for sure. My strength has always been my unpredictability, even on the men's tour.'
A battle-of-the-sexes style match has been contested three times in the past. There were two in 1973 when Bobby Riggs defeated Margaret Court 6-2, 6-1 and Billie Jean King topped Riggs 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. In 1992, Jimmy Connors defeated Martina Navratilova 7-6, 6-2.
During the Dubai match, Sabalenka's side of the court will be 9% smaller, with both players restricted to one serve.
--Field Level Media
Get a daily dose of China National News news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to China National News.
More InformationSANTA CLARA, California: Nvidia has struck a deal with artificial intelligence startup Groq to license its chip technology and bring...
HYDERABAD, India: With generic rivals waiting in the wings, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk are intensifying efforts to lock in market share...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stock markets finished Friday's shortened trading session mixed, with modest losses in blue-chip stocks offset...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: American consumers once again proved to be the backbone of the U.S. economy, pushing growth to its fastest pace in...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Trump administration's effort to bring artificial intelligence expertise into the federal workforce has attracted...
LONDON, U.K.: BP has agreed to sell control of its Castrol lubricants business in a US$6 billion transaction, marking a significant...
In the backwash of the Sydney massacre, numerous questions arise, puzzling and otherwise. One, which readers may be able to solve for...
NIIGATA, Japan: Japan has taken a decisive step toward restarting the world's largest nuclear power station, as a regional political...
The Israeli military said it shot dead a Palestinian suspected of hurling a block at soldiers on Saturday during an operation in the...
(Photo credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images) Aryna Sabelenka promises complete confidence. Nick Kyrgios offers uncertainty. In that sense,...
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 27 (ANI): Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has turned 60 years old today. The film fraternity...
Melbourne [Australia], December 27 (ANI): England star batter Joe Root hit another milestone in cricket as he became only the ninth...
