Aryna Sabalenka has made it perfectly clear that her intention is not to meet Nick Kyrgios only for the sake of playing against a male player as the WTA world No. 1 insists she will bring her top game and do her best to beat the 2022 Wimbledon finalist.
What had been rumored for the past couple of months became official on Tuesday when sports and entertainment company TLive confirmed that Sabalenka and Kyrgios would square off in a Battle of the Sexes match. The highly anticipated clash is slated to take place on December 28th in Dubai's Coca-Cola Arena.
Since 1973, there had been a couple of matches that saw a female player take on a male player. However, the most iconic match remains the first Battle of the Sexes between WTA founder Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.
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For Sabalenka - who has a residence in Dubai and loves to vacation there whenever she can - she finds the Coca-Cola Arena as the perfect location for her to take on an ATP player. And the four-time Grand Slam champion already sounds extremely determined and motivated to make it a memorable night.
Sabalenka: Dubai is my home and I'm ready to bring my A-game against Kyrgios
I have so much respect for Billie Jean King and what she has done for the women's game. I'm proud to represent women's tennis and to be part of this modern take of the iconic Battle of the Sexes match. Dubai is my home, and I know this city loves big, entertaining events. I have a lot of respect for Nick and his talent, but make no mistake, I'm ready to bring my A-game. I can't wait to step on that court at the Coca-Cola Arena and put on an incredible show for the fans," the top-ranked WTA player said ahead of the match.
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During a podcast talk with Alexander Bublik in early September, Kyrgios claimed he would not have that hard of a job against Sabalenka and that he would probably win sets with a 6-2 scoreline.
