Aryna Sabalenka gives controversial take on WTA transgender policy before US Open - 'Men are much stronger than women'

Aryna Sabalenka has weighed in on the introduction of genetic sex-testing in women's tennis.

In just three weeks, the final tennis major of the year will officially get underway as the US Open starts in Queens, New York City, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

As the tournament gets closer, much of the discussion will centre on the participation of several of the sport's injured stars, with Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu both hoping to return for the final major.

However, the Women Tennis Association’s (WTA) new genetic sex-testing policy will also no doubt be a topic of discussion among the biggest players in women's tennis, with the rules set to officially come into force on Tuesday.

The policy means players will undergo a one-time test for the SRY gene - which allows biological sex to be determined - by either a cheek swab or a blood test.

Previously, the WTA’s previous eligibility rules allowed transgender women to compete as long as they declared their gender as female and keeping testosterone levels below a required threshold for at least two years.

Since the new rules were announced, there has been continued debate about transgender women in tennis, with some criticising the changes while others praise them.

And when asked for her view on the matter, current world no.1 Sabalenka revealed that she believed that it was 'very important' that the new testing was put in place.

“It’s very important to maintain fairness in our circuit,” she said.

“It’s obvious that, biologically, men are much stronger than women, so it wouldn’t seem fair to me for a woman to compete against a biological man.

“I think it took them a while to make this decision and, yes, I support it. But I’m concentrating on myself, on my goals, on whatever it takes. If you want to test us all, I will gladly do so, it’s pretty fair, and let’s keep it that way.”

There are currently no known transgender women currently playing on the WTA Tour.

The rules come after World Boxing approved the use of the SRY test in May 2025 after introducing mandatory sex testing for all athletes wanting to compete in the women's category.

READ MORE: Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka join forces as controversial format returns at US Open

Sabalenka addresses 'huge advantage' men have in tennis

Sabalenka's comments come just eight months after she competed against Nick Kyrgios in a Battle of the Sexes exhibition match in Dubai.

Before the match, she claimed that men automatically have a major advantage in tennis, saying: "I have nothing to do against them, but I feel like they have still got a huge advantage over the women and I think it’s not fair on women to face basically biological men.

"The woman has been working her whole life to reach her limit and then she has to face a man, who is biologically much stronger, so for me I don’t agree with this kind of stuff in sport."

After the match she added that playing against a man had a 'completely different' intensity, further echoing these comments.