Aryna Sabalenka’s 2025 season may be officially over, but there are still a few matches left for her to play before the year concludes.
After all, despite having just enjoyed a well-deserved holiday, the allure of exhibition matches is something not every tennis star can turn down.
Whether it’s to gain exposure, get some extra minutes in the tank, or just to benefit financially, there are plenty of big-name stars who are happy to cut short their off-season in favour of playing a few extra matches before the new campaign begins.
However, few are featuring in a clash like Aryna Sabalenka’s, who will face Nick Kyrgios in the 2025 iteration of the Battle of the Sexes.
Aryna Sabalenka’s coach gives his honest thoughts on the Battle of the Sexes
Speaking on The Line podcast, Jason Stacy, who has been alongside the Belarusian for many years now as her coach, has delivered his verdict on the show.
He began by speaking about Sabalenka’s opponent: “Well, I think Nick is a very good player. I mean, I don’t know if you’ve been watching, it’s very obvious he hasn’t been playing for a little while, but I don’t know.”
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Stacy then turned his attention to the event as a whole, showing scepticism, but genuine curiosity: “This Battle of the Sexes thing. I wasn’t involved in any of the process. I thought it would be kind of a cool, fun thing to do, that I’m obviously changing some of the structure and the rules and the court size and a bunch of variables to make it more even.
“Because the reality is, whether people like it or not, there is a reason that we have weight classes and skill differences and gender differences. There really is a difference; does it matter?
“And different, and it doesn’t mean different isn’t good, bad, better, it just means they’re just different. That’s why there are these things. So that way, we create an environment where everyone has an opportunity to compete. Everyone has an opportunity to see how good they are. Like, skill level and everything’s equal. Let’s see who can do a better job today.
“So I think it’s just a fun thing they’re going to do. I’m not even going to be there, to be honest. I’m going to be with my family, Christmas and New Year’s. You go have fun, whatever.
“They’re going to do a little bit of banter, talking trash to each other. It’ll be fun.”
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He also revealed a useful insight into how Sabalenka has fared against men in the past, albeit only in practice: “Yeah. But it’s not truly like, you know, man versus woman. We practice with some of the men sometimes, actually, and she does well. She’s strong and she’s quick. But she knows, too, like, especially the serve, it’s a big difference. It’s a big difference.
“So, like, just the pace of what they move, the power they have, you, like, some of her forehands are the speed of, like, the men.”
Elsewhere in the podcast, Sabalenka’s coach shared how he felt about her shouting at him mid-match.
When is the 2025 Battle of the Sexes between Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios?
The 2025 Battle of the Sexes will take place later this month, featuring the top-ranked female player and a former men’s Wimbledon finalist.
On the surface, it is being billed as a clash between two athletes at the top of their game.
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However, in reality, only one of them has actually done anything of note over the last two years, with Kyrgios having been sadly sidelined with numerous injury issues.
Alas, he seems fit enough to be consistently promoting this clash and his other exhibitions, with plans to likely feature at the Australian Open in January as well.
This Battle of the Sexes will take place on the 28th December in Dubai.
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