Ahead of the Battle of the Sexes, which will take place in Dubai on December 28, Sabalenka has been widely criticized for agreeing to take part in a match against a male player. The main claim is that the world No 1 is exposing women’s tennis to the risk of losing badly to Kyrgios – something that critics of women’s tennis could use to prove their point that there was a clear difference between men’s tennis and women’s tennis.
Rasheed, who coached Lleyton Hewitt when the former world number 1 won the 2005 Australian Open, had a strong view of the clash between Sabalenka and Kyrgios and all but said he didn’t see any positives in it.
Rashed: It’s a lose-lose for women’s tennis… It’s quite insulting
“I’m not a fan of it, to be honest. I think it’s a lose-lose for the women’s side. I actually find it quite insulting, to be quite honest. I don’t see where there is one minute, one second gain for the number one player in the world. If you’re looking after Sabalenka commercially, is this the place you want to be?” Rasheed said ABC Sports.
Earlier this week, Sabalenka was directly asked about the criticism surrounding her match against Kyrgios. The reigning US Open champion played it down, saying the pressure was on the Australian’s side and he was “in a lose-lose situation”.
“I’m not putting myself in danger. We’re here to have fun and bring great tennis. Whoever wins, wins. It’s so clear that man is biologically stronger than woman, but that’s not the point. This event will only help take women’s tennis to the next level,” said the top-ranked WTA player.
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