Overview
- World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka will face Nick Kyrgios at Dubai’s 17,000-seat Coca-Cola Arena on December 28 in a confirmed exhibition organized by Evolve, which represents both players.
- A press release featured Sabalenka pledging to represent women’s tennis and bring her A-game, while Kyrgios said he accepted the challenge and promised to entertain.
- Specific match conditions have not been finalized, though some reports have floated potential modifications such as a one-serve limit and a reduced hitting area for Kyrgios.
- Kyrgios enters the event with limited recent competition after wrist surgery and is ranked No. 652, having last played an ATP match in March.
- The showdown is framed as a modern iteration of Billie Jean King’s 1973 match against Bobby Riggs and the 1992 Connors-Navratilova exhibition, and it carries no ranking points.