Aryna Sabalenka takes on Nick Kyrgios at the Battle of the Sexes 2025, and tension builds fast! The WTA World No.1 bursts in with fierce energy, ready to claim victory. She challenges the 2022 Wimbledon finalist right on the Dubai court. This event honors the iconic 1973 clash between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. Now, fresh WTA and ATP stars revive the magic! However, fans were left scratching their heads over the change to the court.

Kyrgios grabs the first set win over Sabalenka, 6-3. The Belarusian, with her four Grand Slam titles, refuses to quit. Fans spot one wild twist: her court runs smaller than the Aussie’s!

A fan fired off on X under tennis journalist Jose Morgado’s tweet, “When I first saw it, I feared my TV was broken 🙆🏽‍♂️🙆🏽‍♂️” No TV glitch here. Organizers planned this twist on purpose.

During the match, Aryna Sabalenka’s court was nine per cent smaller than Kyrgios’, which operated within the standard dimensions. As per Evolve, this was done as data found that women players move about 9% slower on average than men, hence the levelling of the playing field.

The alteration made the court look extremely odd on viewing. Many viewers felt lost and baffled. Confusion exploded online as fans scrambled to understand the unusual setup.

Fans react to the odd court size for Aryna Sabalenka

One fan on X summed up the confusion perfectly, writing, “Is it my eyes or the Sabalenka side of the court looks smaller? 😳” And they were right—the Belarusian side was trimmed by nine percent, a detail that didn’t go unnoticed by eagle-eyed viewers.

The exhibition came with a few twists. Each player was allowed only one serve instead of two, and Sabalenka’s side was reduced in size to compensate for speed differences between men and women. It wasn’t the only special rule either. A 10-point deciding tiebreak was ready to be used if it came down to that. But Nick didn’t need it, sealing the win in around 70 minutes. Fans, though, were divided over what they saw.

“My ADHD does NOT like how the court looks with lines not lining up lol,” one viewer joked, echoing the general discomfort with the uneven design. A lot of people felt the court looked off, and the optical imbalance only fueled the debate online.

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The 2022 Wimbledon finalist never one to miss a chance to stir things up, even poked fun at the dimensions mid-match. He took advantage of the “equalizer” setup to break Aryna Sabalenka to love in the third game, joking with the crowd along the way. While the atmosphere was fun, some fans weren’t thrilled with how casual his game looked.

“Nick is barely pushing the ball here,” one viewer commented. “They could’ve made the court same dimensions and give her a game lead or something or points lead in every game. The different dimensions is looking awful!” The sentiment captured the frustration of those who felt the concept went too far.

Evolve, the event’s organizers, stood by the decision, explaining that the nine percent reduction on Sabalenka’s side was meant to “reflect average movement-speed differences between men and women.” Even so, plenty of people weren’t on board. One fan fired back, “It’s dumb. If you’re gonna do this don’t make one side of the court smaller. I get it they’re trying to make this competitive but it takes away from Nick’s serve.”

Still, Nick stayed sharp and closed the match 6-3, 6-3. There were underarm serves, laughs, and even a dance break from the Belarusian during a timeout that had the 17,000 fans at the Coca-Cola Arena laughing. Afterward, Kyrgios praised his opponent with genuine respect.

“It was a really tough match, she is a hell of a player and such a great champion,” he said. “I didn’t really know what to expect. She broke my serve numerous times. Honestly, I had to strap in because she was putting the pressure on. She was hitting some amazing shots.”

The Battle of the Sexes ends with him taking the win, but now it’s time for the 2026 season to kick off! Aryna Sabalenka will return to the WTA court as the World No.1, but perhaps they’ll meet again on the court. This time with the dimensions unchanged?