There were a few changes compared to normal tennis matches. So both protagonists only had one serve. There were no changes of sides as Sabalenka’s side of the pitch was nine percent smaller than Kyrgios’s. The aim was to create conditions that were as fair as possible.
The spectators in the arena and on the screens were treated to an unusual picture. The boundaries of the field on Sabalenka’s side were not identical to those on the half in which Kyrgios played. “This court looks absolutely terrible,” wrote tennis expert José Morgado on X.
“I’m not sure this match really did tennis any favors,” wrote former world-class player Greg Rusedski. He also criticized the Australian’s sometimes flippant demeanor. “Kyrgio’s antics: serving from below, brazen stops, and so on, that doesn’t make him look good again.”
And journalist Ben Rothenberg said: “This match definitely made the world dumber.” He continued: “The whole event was just a window dressing. Kyrgios can often say that this is the future of tennis. What future is that supposed to be,” said the tennis expert at X.
From an anatomical perspective, men hit harder than women, even though Sabalenka is one of the most powerful players on the tennis tour.
The tennis battle of the sexes originated in 1973. Bobby Riggs, former world number one and Wimbledon winner, challenged the top players at the age of 55. The Australian Margaret Court, then the most successful player in the world, suffered a crushing defeat 2:6, 1:6, which went down in history as the “Mother’s Day Massacre”.
A little later, Billie Jean King won against Riggs, and this victory was a huge success for women’s sports. More than 50 million people watched in the USA alone. The spectacle was made into a film in 2017, starring Emma Stone and Steve Carell.