Billie Jean King recently shared her thoughts on Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios replicating her iconic “Battle of the Sexes” match later this year. King faced Bobby Riggs at the Houston Astrodome in September 1973, with a $100,000 prize at stake. She won the match 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
Billie Jean King Makes Her Feelings Known on Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios’ ‘Battle of the Sexes’ Match
Sabalenka and Kyrgios’ Battle of the Sexes match is being organized by their management agency, Evolve, and is scheduled for Dec. 28, 2025, at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai. This exhibition match will feature modified rules, allowing the Aussie to serve only once and requiring him to aim for a smaller target on the court, among other stipulations.
In a recent interview with BBC Sport, King commented on the upcoming match between Sabalenka and Kyrgios. She stated that her match with Riggs was about “social change” and noted that the 1973 match and the upcoming match are not the same, as hers was a three-out-of-five-sets contest without any altered rules.
“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. I played Bobby three out of five sets. I played on a court and didn’t change anything. I said, ‘Look, I play straight up, or else I’m not going to play.’ And Bobby loved it,” King said.
The 12-time Grand Slam singles champion described her match with Riggs as “political” and “rough,” asserting that she needed to defeat Riggs to drive “societal change” for women in sports.
“Mine was really political. It was rough, culturally, what was coming in with it. I knew I had to beat him for societal change. I had a lot of reasons to win. They are there to have fun and bring great tennis. We have never said we are better than men – ever. We have talked about our entertainment value — sometimes a woman’s match ends up being better than a guy’s match. I get upset when people say you think you are better. We have never said that. Never,” she added.
In addition to King and Riggs’ match, and the upcoming bout between Sabalenka and Kyrgios, other notable matches in the Battle of the Sexes series include Riggs vs. Margaret Court in May 1973 and Martina Navratilova vs. Jimmy Connors in September 1992.
