Former Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza has hit out at Aryna Sabalenka\u2019s scheduled match against Nick Kyrgios. The retired Spanish ace has argued she would have personally lost to an amateur men\u2019s player when she was world No.1.<\/p>\n
Sabalenka<\/a>, who currently tops the WTA rankings, is set to face Kyrgios<\/a> in a controversial three-set contest<\/a> on Sunday, December 28. The exhibition is being held in Dubai and will have altered rules, with Sabalenka\u2019s side of the court being nine per cent smaller and both players being limited to one serve. It is an attempt to replicate the famous Battle of the Sexes clash between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs in 1973, which King won in straight sets. However, Muguruza, who clinched the Wimbledon<\/a> title in 2017, does not rate Sabalenka\u2019s chances of replicating King\u2019s triumph<\/a> due to Kyrgios\u2019 physicality.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve had so many [male] hitting partners, and every time I had to play a practice set against them, I\u2019d end up super frustrated,\u201d she told El Partidazo de COPE<\/a>. \u201cHow can it be that I can\u2019t win a set against someone who isn\u2019t even a professional player, someone who\u2019s just a sparring partner?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe difference is huge. It\u2019s not just power \u2013 physically\u2026 the muscles, the stamina a man has to play a match\u2026 There are so many things. I have two brothers and I\u2019ve never beaten them.<\/p>\n \u201cA guy who is ranked 1,000 in the world or doesn\u2019t even have a ranking could be far superior to a top-10 player on the WTA circuit. When I was at my best level, being world No.1, I wouldn\u2019t have even beaten a junior.\u201d<\/p>\n Kyrgios, 30, is currently 673rd in the ATP rankings, having had limited action since returning from a career-threatening wrist injury. Sabalenka has faced criticism for agreeing to the match, as a defeat could be perceived as damaging for women\u2019s tennis, but the 27-year-old has offered a different perspective<\/a>.<\/p>\n