Billie Jean King criticizes the Battle of the Sexes between Sabalenka and Kyrgios: "I want Aryna to win, but.."

Diego Jiménez Rubio | 12 Dec 2025 | 10.36

Billie Jean King criticizes Sabalenka and Kyrgios' Battle of the Sexes. Photo: gettyimages

Streaming ATP Adelaide MD live tennis

🎾 Krawietz/Puetz vs King/Peers

Sign up with Bet365 here
Make your first deposit of at least €5
Go to the “Live” section and watch every match

Watch the match on Bet365

There is a lot of media noise and some controversy surrounding the show scheduled for December 28 in Dubai, featuring the Battle of the Sexes between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios. No one like Billie-Jean King to give her opinion about the implications of this event, having been the first to challenge a man on a court in 1973, a key moment for women's tennis.

Great anticipation surrounds the attractive duel between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios, dubbed as the Battle of the Sexes, with unclear objectives. While in the match played by Billie-Jean King in 1973 against former player Bobby Riggs, the aim was to advocate for women's rights to structure a professional circuit and obtain the necessary rights to pursue tennis professionally, this time it seems to be more about business that could distort the still necessary claims for female empowerment.

Billie-Jean King does not understand the purpose of the Battle of the Sexes between Sabalenka and Kyrgios

The mentioned Billie-Jean King expressed these sentiments in an interview with the BBC, criticizing this event and showing skepticism about its potential contributions. "The only similarity between that match and mine at the time is that a boy and a girl will face off. Everything else is irrelevant. What I did was aimed at fostering a social and cultural change in the context we were in. Obviously, I want Sabalenka to win but I don't understand certain aspects, and it cannot be compared to my match," affirmed the 82-year-old woman.

One peculiarity of the match is that the side of the court where Sabalenka plays will be 9% smaller than Kyrgios's side, and the Belarusian will have two serves while the Australian will have only one. "I played against Bobby in a five-set match without changing anything on the court. I told myself that I had to compete on equal terms because if not, it was better not to do it. My action was politically harsh and brought about a powerful cultural change. I knew I had to win that match to drive progress; there were many reasons to compete," explained the American.

Many believe that the match between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios poses a risk for women's tennis, as a clear defeat of the world number 1 could undermine women in the sport of tennis. "I don't know, you would have to ask Aryna after the game, but no woman has ever claimed to be better than men. We always talk about the value of what we do. Sometimes, a women's match ends up being more entertaining than a men's match, but it bothers me a lot when some try to suggest that we think we are better than men because we have never said anything like that," she pointed out.

For this reason, many critical voices have emerged regarding this match and its potential impact on public opinion depending on the outcome. This is a very emotional issue where polarizing and distorted conclusions can be drawn. Billie-Jean King has given her verdict, and it is essential to consider it, as she was the great pioneer of women's tennis and elevated the concept of Battles of the Sexes in the tennis world.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Billie-Jean King critica la Batalla de los Sexos entre Sabalenka y Kyrgios: "Quiero que gane Aryna, pero..."