Aryna Sabalenka wants Battle of the Sexes rematch with Nick Kyrgios as she seeks 'revenge' for defeat
Nick Kyrgios beat Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 6-3 in 'Battle of the Sexes' match in Dubai; world No 1 Sabalenka has said she would want a rematch but she would change some of the rules to make it more level
Thursday 1 January 2026 12:28, UK
Aryna Sabalenka has welcomed the idea of a rematch of her 'Battle of the Sexes' match with Nick Kyrgios that she lost in straight sets in Dubai at the end of December.
The match saw some amended rules in order to attempt to make the match 'equal', including Sabalenka playing from a smaller court and both players only having one serve.
However, the women's world No 1 claims that the adapted rules also posed challenges to her, and if they were to play again she would make some more changes to 'level it'.
- Battle of the Sexes: Nick Kyrgios beats Aryna Sabalenka
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"I think I would definitely do it again," Sabalenka said. "I love revenges and I don't like to leave it the way it is.
"And I think for the next match we'll come up with a different format because before the match, I didn't realise that I have to adjust as well and it was a bit tricky for me as well.
"I think that I would still keep the full court for Nick [Kyrgios], but I would take two serves, that would even our level a bit more.
"As I always say, you're not losing, you're learning. And I learned a lot about this game.
"Now I know better Nick as a player and as a person as well, so I feel like I know how to play against him.
"We will do it again, I need the revenge."
Sabalenka's side of the court was reduced in size by nine per cent for the three-set contest, with the modified rules also seeing both players restricted to one serve for each point rather than the usual two.
A 10-point deciding tie-break would have been implemented if required, but Kyrgios - who has played just five singles matches this year because of injuries - needed around 70 minutes to see off Sabalenka 6-3 6-3.
"I'm happy that I was able to challenge him and make him work and make him physically get tired and mentally also get tight," she added.
"I saw that and I felt really excited to see a man getting tight and going for his full game."
