Partner Media Outlet.
Two of the top female tennis players in the world told reporters this week at a tournament in Toronto that they have no problem with the new gender screening test now required by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) to prevent biological males from being allowed to compete.
Jessica Pegula, ranked third in the world and the top-ranked American, and Aryna Sabalenka, the top-ranked women’s player, were asked about the WTA’s policy implemented in July requiring a one-time test for SRY gene, which indicates male sex development. Both said they consider the test to be fair.
“Yeah, my opinion is I think the WTA just wanted to update their policy based on what they have seen from other sporting organizations,” Pegula said after winning a match at the National Bank Open on Wednesday. “So far, at least from my point of view, I don’t really have any pushback on it.”
🚨 AWESOME! America’s number one women’s tennis player just came out AGAINST the transgender cult pushing men in women’s sports
Q: The new required gender test. How do you feel about it?
Jessica Pegula: I don’t have ANY pushback on it.
👏🏻👏🏻
WOMEN ARE NOT MEN
It’s THAT… pic.twitter.com/6jV5c9tnJB
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 7, 2026
The same one-time SRY test was adopted earlier this year by the International Olympic Committee for women’s events at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and future Games.
“I think it’s really important to keep the fairness in our tour,” Sabalenka said. “It’s obviously, biologically, the men are way stronger than women, so I feel like it would be not really fair for the woman to compete against biological man.”
A positive test would make a player ineligible while awaiting a further medical review. The previous tour policy permitted “transgender” males to be eligible for competition after lowering testosterone levels for two years.
The WTA explained that it made the policy change to ensure fairness on the court and to preserve the integrity of the game.
“I believe it took (the WTA) a little while to make this decision and, yeah, I support it,” Sabalenka continued. “If they want to test us all, I’m happy to do that; it’s pretty fair, and let’s keep it that way.”
Number 1-ranked female tennis player in the world, Aryna Sabalenka, finishes press conference by saying men shouldn’t be in women’s sports.
“It’s obvious that biologically the men are way stronger than women.”
Crazy that the ‘trust the science’ crowd finds this controversial. pic.twitter.com/7PsGREMLut
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 4, 2026
American Coco Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam champion, also supported the testing, but she went on to defend transgenderism.
“I understand the reasoning behind it,” she said. “I do think that this kind of conversation has created a lot of animosity towards the trans community, which I’m not really a big fan of. But I also understand the need to I guess the biological difference and the need to protect that and preserve that.”
The topic of gender-confused men competing in women’s sports has received plenty of attention in the past two weeks after WNBA player Sophie Cunningham of the Indiana Fever created a firestorm with comments similar to the two tennis players that biological males should not be allowed to compete against females because the men possess superior physical advantages.
“I said what I said,” Cunningham said. “I think it’s kind of common sense. And I think I’ll always believe in that. I think it’s really important to protect children, and that’s little girls who are also involved in that category. I stand on what I said.”
Women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova is an LGBT advocate but has been outspoken in her opposition to biological males being allowed to compete in women’s sports. She recently defended Cunningham for her comments.
Writing recently in the Sunday Times, Navratilova referred to transgender males in an op-ed piece as men who “decide to be female” while saying that men competing against women is “cheating and unfair” and adding on X that Cunningham is ‘pro-WOMEN.”
