The confrontation between Sabalenka and Kyrgios quickly attracted great attention from global tennis fans, and at the same time created many opposing opinions related to the professionalism and competitiveness of the male-female competition model in the same match.
Sabalenka is very excited to face her male colleague. However, Nick Kyrgios showed dominance in the match, winning after 2 sets with a score of 6-3.
The match had some adjustments to be more balanced, but it seemed that those things did not affect Kyrgios much. Before the match, it was announced that both players would only serve once each point and Sabalenka's court would be narrowed by 9%.
Both changes were made to help Sabalenka gain an advantage. With the rules of service being applied, it was believed that Kyrgios would not be able to launch strong serves, for fear of losing points. However, in the end, Sabalenka encountered difficulties with his serves, losing many points to Kyrgios throughout the match.
According to international media, Sabalenka had many moments of annoyance in the match, but she was still satisfied with her performance and excited about being able to face Kyrgios again.
I feel great. I played very well and he had difficulty, he was really tired. It was a high-level match, I made many great shots, moved up the net, small shots and excellent serves. I really liked this match. Next time I meet him, I will know his strengths and weaknesses and surely the match will be even better," Sabalenka said.
Meanwhile, Kyrgios called it "a really difficult match" and praised Sabalenka for "putting pressure".
In general, the match between Sabalenka vs Kyrgios has caused much controversy. Many people wonder if Kyrgios, who has spent most of the past two years due to injury, is losing his form, or if he is trying his best. The second issue was raised before the tournament, when Emma Raducanu asked whether both players were really trying their best.
In the past there have been many notable matches between male and female players. In 1973, Billie Jean King defeated Bobby Riggs in a historic match. Also in 1973, male player Bobby Riggs defeated famous female player Margaret Court.
In 1992, Jimmy Connors defeated Martina Navratilova in two consecutive sets.
