Billie Jean King is a tennis legend who had the opportunity to play in the "Battle of the Sexes" match back in 1973. Her opponent was Bobby Riggs, who was 55 years old when he played against Margaret Court and later against her. Although Riggs was absolutely dominant against Court, winning 6-2, 6-1, a few months later he lost to the 29-year-old King in a match that many consider one of the most significant in the history of tennis.
Billie Jean King's victory was not only connected to tennis, but was also an opportunity to point out the importance of gender equality and the significance of women's sports. Years later, women's tennis has become arguably the most popular women's sport, with plenty of legends who have left a lasting mark.
King is aware of how important the match between Sabalenka and Kyrgios was, but also that these were different times and that in her era such a victory was perhaps even more significant.
“The only similarity is that one is a boy and one is a girl. That’s it,” said King.
"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.
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.”- she said, as quoted by Tennis 365.
Similarities
Speaking about the similarities, King shared her thoughts.
When asked by a journalist whether a Kyrgios victory could possibly threaten Sabalenka's status as world number 1, King pointed out that she is not sure about that, and that the best answer can be given by Sabalenka herself after the match. However, Billie Jean King emphasized that female tennis players never claimed to be better than men.
This match is already causing an avalanche of reactions, both from fans and from professional tennis players and sports fans. Although Kyrgios is considered the favorite in this match, there is no doubt that we will enjoy the duel between Sabalenka and the Australian, and in the end see who will really win.
