Aryna Sabalenka vs Nick Kyrgios – Battle of the Sexes LIVE: Women’s World No.1 hits again after seeing her serve damaged by Australian rival in opening set of generational match

Sabalenka can really rip a forehand and she’s determined to go stroke for stroke with her opponent, but Kyrgios is in control off a gettable serve, and pings his final cross-court winner well past his opponent.

With a roar of frustration, Sabalenka tips her head back after funking her final ball off a sparkling point into the net, handing Kyrgios two break points.

After Kyrgios has a bit of badinage with the crowd, proceedings restart, and Sabalenka absorbs one break point – only for her to overcook her forehand and go long.

Sabalenka builds up a head of steam 15-30 up and looks promising in the rally as she draws him towards the far corner of the court, but her backhand slice falls wetly into the net.

The atmosphere at the Coca-Cola Arena, I feel, is not helping. It does feel cagey. But she has her chance to take her break back when Kyrgios faults….

Only to be outsmarted by a brilliant piece of serve and volley by Kyrgios for deuce.

Sabalenka gains the advantage next however, and makes hay with it, sprinting up the court to show off her own net game, and delivering a whisper-soft drop shot the less-than-match-fit Kyrgios can’t reach.

It’s quite hard to look at.

Aside from this freakshow FrankenCourt, the real issue is the lack of second-serve for Sabalenka. She’s broken to love after struggling with her first-and-only serve.

I really can’t see a benefit in reducing the serve count – it certainly doesn’t up the capacity for ‘fun’ from Sabalenka’s perspective.

Kyrgios opens with an ace – expect a lot of those, but perhaps a greater test when he fatigues and must contend with the smaller service box. Sabalenka gets on the board with a punchy forehand, but falls victim to a near-miss on the baseline. No HawkEye in Dubai, it seems.

A final ace, and he wraps up the game.

Bizarre to watch Sabalenka on her side of the court, ever-so-slightly in miniature. The Belarusian opens the serving, and gets the bigger cheer when Kyrgios skies his forehand return to earn her her first point, 15-all.

Directional play will be the name of the game, for Sabalenka to flaunt her superior fitness – a power contest, as the big blasting Belarusian might normally prefer, won’t work. She has him skittering as she sends a ball down the line and past him, but falls victim to the one-serve only to make it 30-30.

Kyrgios again screeches across the baseline in an attempt to return her backhand, but there’s no luck for him – she has the first game point, and claims it when he underpowers a whippy forehand into the net.

To recap, the differences between this match and a tour-level match are:

• Sabalenka’s court side is nine per cent smaller, and the two will not change ends
• One serve apiece
• Players will be allowed a one-minute coaching timeout
• The third set, if needed, will be a 10-point tiebreaker

First out, Kyrgios, who walks out holding the hand of a young mascot. Music pounds around the 17,000-seater Coca-Cola Arena. He looks muted and edgy, however.

But Sabalenka challenges Billie Jean King and the spirit of the spectacle by descending from the top of the stadium in a sparkly jacket to the booming sound of ‘Eye of the Tiger’ – a hat-tip to her ‘tiger’ nickname.

It’s not being brought in on a litter by men holding features to fan her with – a la King – but it’s something.

Their decision to purchase the broadcasting rights came under scrutiny in the tennis community, and it’s fair to say that so far, they’ve not shied away from the more challenging aspects of the match.

The only similarity is that one is a boy and one is a girl. That’s it.

Everything else, no. Ours was about social change; culturally, where we were in 1973. This one is not.

I hope it’s a great match – I want Sabalenka, obviously, to win – but it’s just not the same.

You heard her!

There are people from across the tennis spectrum who think this match should not be going ahead (due to the involvement of Kyrgios).

One, he admitted to assaulting his ex-girlfriend by pushing her onto a pavement in Canberra in 2021, and also because he’s had distance himself from influencer and misogynist Andrew Tate, who is facing a mixture of criminal and civil proceedings.

I hate to hear that, because I don’t feel that way at all.

It’s just about competition and good fun. For me, Sabalenka would never be expected to beat a man, no matter whether he’s been injured or not.

If you’re talking about pressure, the pressure is all on him. He actually respects her enormously.

Russell Fuller adds:

The women’s No 1, through no fault of her own, could devalue women’s tennis. And there are certain who need no invitation to denigrate women’s tennis, and it may give ammunition to those who want to belittle women’s sport.