Shookra Clinics appointed Longevity Partner for Dubai’s Battle of the Sexes tennis event

As Aryna Sabalenka and Nick Kyrgios prepare to face off in Dubai in a headline-grabbing Battle of the Sexes tennis exhibition, attention will naturally gravitate toward athletic firepower, precision shot-making, and competitive drama. Yet running alongside the on-court action is a broader narrative reshaping elite sport itself: the growing centrality of longevity and recovery science in sustaining peak performance.

Elite tennis has evolved into a relentless physical and mental test. Matches often extend for hours, seasons are packed with international travel, and the cumulative strain on the body can be unforgiving. In this environment, the margin between winning and burnout is increasingly defined not by training volume alone, but by how effectively athletes recover, regenerate, and manage long-term physiological stress.

That shift is reflected in the appointment of Shookra as the event’s official Longevity Partner. The Dubai-based, AI-powered clinic represents a new generation of performance support — one that treats recovery and biological optimisation as strategic assets rather than afterthoughts. Its presence at a major tennis showcase highlights how longevity science is moving from the periphery to the centre of elite competition.

Tennis places unique demands on the human system. Players routinely cover several kilometres per match, execute repeated high-impact movements, and sustain intense concentration under pressure. Over time, this load affects joints, connective tissue, nervous system balance, and metabolic efficiency. As careers extend and competition intensifies, athletes are increasingly turning to advanced longevity protocols to preserve durability and consistency.

Oxygen-based therapies have become a staple of elite recovery programmes, helping improve cellular oxygen delivery, reduce inflammation, and accelerate muscle repair following intense exertion. Once considered niche, these treatments are now widely integrated into high-performance environments across global sport.

Intravenous therapies such as NAD+ have also gained prominence, particularly for their role in supporting mitochondrial function. By enhancing cellular energy production, NAD+ is associated with improvements in endurance, mental clarity, and reaction speed — qualities essential in fast-paced, high-pressure sports like tennis.

Peptide therapies represent another expanding frontier. Compounds including BPC-157, MOTS-c, and copper peptides are being used to support tissue healing, tendon strength,

metabolic regulation, and cellular repair. The objective is no longer simply to treat injuries, but to strengthen the body’s ability to withstand repetitive stress before breakdown occurs.

More advanced regenerative approaches, including stem cells and exosomes — where clinically appropriate and tightly governed — are also being explored to support joint health and

long-term musculoskeletal resilience. This proactive focus reflects a broader reorientation toward extending performance longevity rather than reacting to damage after the fact.

Driving these interventions is an increasing reliance on data. AI-driven diagnostics and biological age assessments allow athletes and their teams to track recovery capacity, inflammation, sleep quality, and nervous system stress with far greater precision. By distinguishing biological age from chronological age, performance strategies can be personalised, training loads adjusted intelligently, and early warning signs of overtraining identified.

The benefits of this integrated approach are becoming increasingly evident. Athletes adopting structured longevity programmes are reporting quicker recovery cycles, fewer recurring injuries, improved cardiovascular efficiency, and longer periods of sustained peak performance.

Longevity, once associated mainly with aging populations, has become a competitive lever at the highest levels of sport.

Ankiti Bose, Partner at Terra-Invest and Chairperson of Shookra Clinics, sees this as an inevitable evolution. “Elite athletes already operate at extraordinary training standards,” she says. “What increasingly separates the very best is how intelligently they manage recovery and regeneration. Longevity today is about extending excellence, not slowing decline.”

Dubai’s emergence as a hub for sport, innovation, and advanced health science provides a fitting backdrop for this convergence. The inclusion of a dedicated longevity partner at a high-profile tennis exhibition reflects the city’s broader role in shaping next-generation approaches to performance and wellbeing.

As Sabalenka and Kyrgios take centre stage, the match offers more than a spectacle for fans. It offers insight into how elite sport is being redefined — with longevity science, recovery intelligence, and biological optimisation now firmly embedded in the pursuit of sustained greatness.