Nick Kyrgios sealed a rather comfortable 6-3, 6-3 win over Women's World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka in the Battle of Sexes match in Dubai on Sunday. In front of a packed Coco Cola House, the two tennis stars battled it out in a set of different rules. However, the rule change did not count for much with Kyrgios ambling through to an easy win.
To level the playing field, rules saw points awarded per serve and Sabalenka's side of court reduced by 9%. Kyrgios and Sabalenka seemed relaxed with a few under arm serves and some dancing from the latter in front of a 17,000 strong crowd.
Kyrgios made smart use of the slightly smaller “equaliser” court, breaking his opponent to love in the third game. The next four games all went against serve, before the Australian again held to love to take a 5–3 lead, breaking Sabalenka once more as he wrapped up the opening set.
Sabalenka briefly threatened a comeback in the second set, winning three games in a row to move 3–1 ahead. She even entertained the crowd by dancing to the Macarena during her 60-second timeout. Kyrgios, however, responded emphatically, rattling off five straight games to seal the match on his third match point.
The Australian tennis ace has been wrecked by injuries in the past few years, featuring in only 6 games since 2023. Sabalenka meanwhile has won four Grand Slams and at the top of the WTA Player Rankings.
