MATCH PREVIEW: ANALYZING ARYNA SABALENKA VS. NICK KYRGIOS TACTICAL RULE SHIFTS AND COURT DIMENSIONS
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka faces Nick Kyrgios in Dubai’s "Battle of the Sexes." Learn the modified rules and match start times.
When Aryna Sabalenka plays Nick Kyrgios in Sunday’s ‘Battle of the Sexes’ show match, she'll have her rich boyfriend cheering her on. Since last year, Georgios Frangulis, a Brazilian businessman, has been there for her. He goes all over the world to watch her play and has even been seen helping her practice.
They started dating around April 2024, not long after the sad passing of Sabalenka’s ex, Konstantin Koltsov. He was an ice hockey player who died in March of that year. Sabalenka told PEOPLE that Frangulis' support meant a lot to her during that tough time. “It was a hard time, and I was so glad he was there for me, cheering me up and making sure we had some fun,” she said.
They met when Sabalenka became a spokesperson for Oakberry, an acai bowl company started by Frangulis. His company has done really well, and he’s made even more money than Sabalenka has from tennis.
He’s reportedly worth about £55m ($75m), while Sabalenka has earned about £33m ($45m) in prize money. That puts her in second place for all-time earnings in women’s tennis, behind Serena Williams.
They don’t mind the age difference either. Frangulis is nine years older than Sabalenka.
He'll probably be there in Dubai on Sunday when Sabalenka plays Kyrgios in what they are calling a modern version of the Billie Jean King vs. Bobby Riggs match.
Kyrgios, who used to be a Wimbledon finalist, is now ranked No. 1286 because of injuries. But he’s excited to play against Sabalenka, who has been the best player on the women's tour for the last couple of years. The match will be best of three sets, with a tie-break if needed. But they’re playing on a court that’s been changed a bit.
Evolve says that women move around the court more slowly than men, so Sabalenka’s side of the court will be smaller. Each player will also only get one serve per point to try and even things out, since Kyrgios has a really good serve.
BREAKING: AUSTRALIAN OPEN SEEDING AT RISK! CHECK THE NEW 18-TOURNAMENT RANKING RULE NOW
The 2026 ATP season begins with a major rule change. Rankings now count only 18 tournaments, causing points to drop for the Top 10.
The 2026 ATP Tour season kicks off with the United Cup this Friday. Everyone's watching to see what happens in men's tennis this year.
There's a ranking rule change that started late in 2025 that everyone will be dealing with.
Here’s a breakdown of the change and who it's impacting:
What's the New Rule?
Before 2026, a player's ATP ranking could include points from 19 tournaments: the four Grand Slams, the eight mandatory Masters 1000 events, and their next seven best results.
These could be from the Monte Carlo Masters, ATP 500, ATP 250, or Challenger events. Qualifying for the ATP Finals was a bonus.
Now, only 18 events count. Rankings will only include the four Grand Slams, eight mandatory Masters events, and a player's six best results, plus the ATP Finals if they qualify.
Also, the top 30 players only need to play four ATP 500 events, instead of five.
Who's Affected in the Top 10?
This change took place recently, and seven players in the top 10 lost points. Their positions stayed the same this time, except for the players who are stated.
Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Jack Draper were not affected.
Alexander Zverev lost 50 points, Novak Djokovic dropped 10, Felix Auger-Aliassime lost 55, Taylor Fritz dropped 50, Alex de Minaur lost 55, Lorenzo Musetti dropped 50, and Ben Shelton lost 10 points.
What About the Rest of the Rankings?
The top players are mostly okay, but the further down the rankings you go, the more change you'll see.
In the top 20, Jiri Lehecka is the only one impacted. He lost 10 points and fell to No. 18. Karen Khachanov moved up to 17th.
Luciano Darderi and Tallon Griekspoor switched places and are now ranked 25th and 26th. These were the only changes in the top 30.
Outside the top 30, there were bigger moves.
Jaume Munar jumped three spots to No. 33, and Corentin Moutet moved up to 34th. Brandon Nakashima and Stefanos Tsitsipas each fell two spots.
Now ranked 35th and 36th, Nakashima and Tsitsipas might have a harder time getting seeded for the Australian Open.
Pablo Carreno Busta dropped the most, falling from 89th to 93rd.
IMMEDIATE: SHOCKING DETAILS BEHIND CARLOS ALCARAZ-FERRERO SPLIT; WILL HE JOIN RIVAL JANNIK SINNER
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz has shocked tennis by splitting with Juan Carlos Ferrero. Learn the real reason behind the breakup.
Tennis fans were shocked when Carlos Alcaraz and his long-time coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, split. Ferrero has now said whether they've talked since.
Even though Alcaraz is only 22, his time with Ferrero is one of tennis' best. The 2003 French Open champ started coaching Alcaraz, who was a young, promising player in 2019.
With Ferrero's help, Alcaraz became a superstar and one of the most exciting players to watch. He's won six Grand Slams and finished 2025 as the world's top player, ahead of Jannik Sinner.
The only major title they didn't win together was the Australian Open. Even though it's still a few weeks away, people recently saw Alcaraz's outfit for the 2026 tournament in Melbourne. It's bright and colourful.
Alcaraz had a great 2025, winning two more Grand Slams, so the split was even more surprising. It sounds like disagreements between Ferrero and others close to Alcaraz caused the change.
In an interview, Ferrero answered a question everyone's been asking: Have he and Alcaraz been in touch since they stopped working together?
We haven't talked yet because he needs to relax so he can train. Once things calm down, we'll talk, and everything will be fine.
Ferrero's nice words about Alcaraz suggest they'll talk again. He thinks they can still be friends after all they've achieved.
I've learned a lot from Carlos. He's a kid with amazing charisma. He's always loyal and honest, tells the truth, and works really hard. I'm happy because once things settle, I'm sure we'll keep talking, remembering all the things we did together, and stay friends.
It must be tough for Ferrero not to be coaching Alcaraz after working so hard to make him one of the best. Taking some time before talking to the 22-year-old might also be good for him.
Juan Carlos Ferrero was also asked about coaching Jannik Sinner after splitting from Carlos Alcaraz.
Since 2024, one of Ferrero's main jobs has been helping Alcaraz figure out how to beat Jannik Sinner. Together, they've won every men's singles Grand Slam in the last two seasons.
Now that Ferrero isn't Alcaraz's coach, he was asked if he'd consider joining Sinner's team, which would be a huge change in tennis.
Ferrero didn't say no. Instead, he said he needed time to get used to not coaching Alcaraz. Sinner is still coached by Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill, after Cahill changed his mind about retiring at the end of 2025.