Tennis star Nick Kyrgios has given his prediction for his upcoming 'Battle of the Sexes' match against Aryna Sabalenka, the WTA world number one.
Kyrgios has been sidelined through injury issues for a good chunk of 2025, missing Wimbledon, the French Open and the US Open.
His last ATP singles match came in March but Kyrgios is nearing a return and is braced for a historic encounter against Sabalenka.
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In July, the 30-year-old talked up the possibility of facing Sabalenka, who is part of the same agency and said they had been "thinking about doing it later in the year in Hong Kong".
Though there is still no official announcement, Kyrgios is serious about the match-up and discussed it further in an appearance on the new podcast from fellow player Alexander Bublik.
Kyrgios called three-time Grand Slam winner Sabalenka "awesome" and "a character" but said "she’s not going to beat me".
When further questioned, he gave his prediction for how the match would play out, adding: "Do you really think I have to try 100%? I'm gonna try. Because I'm representing the men's side… I’d say like 6-2 maybe.
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"Our serves, like women can’t return and then we can just like chip and like drop shot."
Throughout the discussion, Bublik continued to express his view that he was unsure whether Kyrgios would take the contest seriously.
"I'm not going to do that," Kyrgios replied when Bublik suggested he might not play his normal game.
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"That would make me look so bad, the internet would go crazy. I'm gonna try. I don't want her to win."
The exhibition could take place around the end of October and the start of November when an ATP tournament takes place in Hong Kong.
Kyrgios has already confirmed that the pair will play eight-minute quarters and the first to reach three will be crowned the winner.
In other rules, they will also get one serve on a smaller court where Kyrgios has smaller service boxes than usual.
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What ‘Battle of the Sexes’ tennis games have happened before?
On May 13, 1973, six-time major winner Bobby Riggs, faced Margaret Court, a 24-time major winner, after she was offered $20,000 having only recently returned to the court after giving birth.
Riggs won 6-2, 6-1 and then in the same year, took on Billie Jean King, who recorded a famous 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 win in Houston.
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Nineteen years later, the third ‘Battle of the Sexes’ took place between Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova in Las Vegas, with the former prevailing 7-6, 6-2.
Topics: Nick Kyrgios, Tennis
Josh Lawless