Battle of the Sexes in tennis describes various exhibition matches played between a man and a woman, or a doubles match between two men and two women in one case.
Battle Of The Sexes: The Beginning
The first such match was held in 1973 held at the Houston Astrodome between 55-year-old Bobby Riggs and 29-year-old Billie Jean King, which King won in three sets. The internationally televised match was viewed by an estimated fifty million people in the United States and ninety million worldwide. King’s win is considered a milestone in public acceptance of women’s tennis.
Two other matches commonly referred to as a “battle of the sexes” include one held four months earlier in 1973 between Riggs and Margaret Court over the best of three sets. Riggs emerged victorious here.
Another match took place in 1992 between Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova over the best of three sets, with hybrid rules favoring the female player dubbed “The Battle of Champions”. This match was won by Connors.
Also Read: Aryna Sabalenka Vows To Dominate Nick Kyrgios In Battle Of The Sexes
Several other exhibition matches have been played between notable male and female tennis players starting in 1888, though only some of them were referred to at the time as a “battle of the sexes”. They are as follows:
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1888: Ernest Renshaw beat Lottie Dod (2-6 7-5 7-5)
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1888: Lottie Dod beat Harry Grove (1-6 6-0 6-4)
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1888: Lottie Dod beat William Renshaw (6-2 6-4)
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May 1921: Bill Tilden beat Suzanne Lenglen (6-0)
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1928: Bill Johnston beat Helen Wills
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1928: Edward Chandler beat Helen Wills
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1928: Helen Wills beat Elmer Griffin
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1928: Helen Wills beat Phil Neer
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January 1933: Helen Wills beat Phil Neer (6-3 6-4)
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July 1936: Dorothy Round drew with Bunny Austin (7-5 6-8)
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July 1939: Cyril Kemp beat Alice Marble (9-7 8-6)
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1975: Ion Tiriac beat Abigail Maynard (6-0 6-0)
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October 1975: Bjorn Borg beat Virginia Wade (6-3)
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October 1975: Evonne Goolagong Cawley beat Ilie Nastase (7-5)
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August 1985: Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver beat Vitas Gerulaitis and Bobby Riggs (6-3 6-2 6-4)
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January 1998: Karsten Braasch beat Serena Williams (6-1)
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January 1998: Karsten Braasch beat Venus Williams (6-2)
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December 2003: Yannick Noah beat Justine Henin-Hardenne (4-6 6-4 7-6)
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October 2013: Li Na beat Novak Djokovic (3-2)
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November 2017: Johanna Konta beat Pat Cash (6-3)
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July 2021: Iga Swiatek beat Hubert Hurkacz (7-4 tie-break)
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December 2023: Yanis Ghazouani Durand beat Mirra Andreeva (7-5 6-2)
