Camille Naredo

Poland's Iga Swiatek reacts after a point against Russia's Anna Kalinskaya during their women's singles third round match on day seven of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, on August 30, 2025. Charly Triballeau, AFP/File

Poland's Iga Swiatek reacts after a point against Russia's Anna Kalinskaya during their women's singles third round match on day seven of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, on August 30, 2025. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

Article (news)

US Open

Agence France-Presse

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1767415099539AFP__20250831__72XF7DG__v1__MidRes__TennisUsaOpen.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Poland&#x27;s Iga Swiatek reacts after a point against Russia&#x27;s Anna Kalinskaya during their women&#x27;s singles third round match on day seven of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, on August 30, 2025. Charly Triballeau, AFP/File" width="960"/>Poland&#x27;s Iga Swiatek reacts after a point against Russia&#x27;s Anna Kalinskaya during their women&#x27;s singles third round match on day seven of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, on August 30, 2025. Charly Triballeau, AFP/File</div>SYDNEY, Australia -- Six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday said she saw little point to the &quot;Battle of the Sexes&quot; match and that women&#x27;s tennis has nothing more to prove.World number one Aryna Sabalenka and Australian Nick Kyrgios faced off in a highly publicized and controversial exhibition match in Dubai a week ago.Kyrgios won 6-3, 6-3 with Sabalenka&#x27;s side of the court reduced in size by nine percent in an attempt to restrict his power and speed advantage.It bore little resemblance to the era-defining 1973 &quot;Battle of the Sexes&quot; encounter between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.Back then, there was more at stake with the nascent women&#x27;s professional tour, set up by King, fighting for legitimacy and prize money.&quot;I haven&#x27;t watched because I don&#x27;t watch stuff like that,&quot; world number two Swiatek said in Sydney, where she opens her season at the United Cup.&quot;I think for sure it attracted a lot of attention. It was entertainment, but I wouldn&#x27;t say that had anything to do with social change or any important topics.&quot;I think the name was just the same as the one from the Billie Jean King match in &#x27;73. That&#x27;s it. There were no more similarities because I feel like women&#x27;s tennis stands on its own right now.&quot;We have so many great athletes and great stories to present, we don&#x27;t necessarily need to compare to men&#x27;s tennis.&quot;Honestly, there doesn&#x27;t need to be any competition.&quot;The Polish star, who is preparing for the Australian Open this month, the only Grand Slam she is yet to win, said the mixed-teams United Cup was a better way to celebrate men&#x27;s and women&#x27;s tennis.&quot;I think actually events like this one, United Cup, brings tennis together, and WTA fans and ATP fans can watch this event with so much excitement,&quot; she said.&quot;Seeing also singles players that usually don&#x27;t have space to play mixed doubles together, playing these kind of matches, I think this is actually what makes our sport much more interesting and better.&quot;Ties at the United Cup comprise one men&#x27;s and one women&#x27;s singles and a mixed doubles, with group winners in each host city -- Perth and Sydney -- advancing to the quarter-finals along with the best runners-up.Sabalenka this week defended playing Kyrgios, saying tennis needs to &quot;keep it fresh, keep it new, keep it fun&quot;.&quot;I think I would definitely do it again,&quot; she said. &quot;I love revenge and I don&#x27;t like to leave it the way it is.&quot;

Six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday said she saw little point to the "Battle of the Sexes" match and that women's tennis has nothing more to prove.

Six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday said she saw little point to the "Battle of the Sexes" match and that women's tennis has nothing more to prove.

Swiatek says women's tennis does not need 'Battle of the Sexes'

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

Sports

Swiatek says women's tennis does not need 'Battle of the Sexes'

Agence France-Presse

Published Jan 03, 2026 12:39 PM PHT

Read More:

abssports

tennis

Battle of the Sexes

Iga Swiatek

Aryna Sabalenka

Nick Kyrgios

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.