Coco Gauff says she faced ‘insane’ wave of racist abuse after disputed point at China Open

Coco Gauff said she received an “insane” amount of racist comments on social media after a disputed point in her China Open third-round match against Sun Xinran on Monday, and went on to beat Sun 7-5, 6-1.

The controversy occurred late in the first set when Gauff stopped a rally after electronic advertising boards lining the court flickered during a point; Sun appeared to be about to win the point before the chair umpire ordered it to be replayed. Sun, 16, recently won the US Open junior title, had been given a wild-card entry by tournament organisers and was making her WTA Tour debut; she appeared distraught after the loss. Separately, during a quarter-final match between Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic in the men’s draw on Sunday the umpire also agreed to replay a point after Zverev complained about flickering panels.

Gauff, who is Black, posted on X: “Hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist,” and added: “The amount of racist comments/dms I’ve received in the last few hours is insane. Lastly, I‘m not a cheater or a thief.”

In a separate post Gauff wrote: “I think it’s weird I’m getting hate for following the rules. Xinran is [an] incredible talent and player, I apologized for the situation at the end of the match and she completely understood.”

Gauff, a two-time grand slam champion ranked No 4, took control of the match after the disputed point and later reflected on Sun’s reaction, saying: “I did not like to see her so emotional as I’ve been there and I really understand what it is like but this is just the beginning of an incredible career. It was an honour to share the court in front of her home crowd.” She is due to play Elise Mertens in the last 16 on Wednesday.

Jannik Sinner confirmed on Tuesday that he will be out for the rest of the year with an injured knee. His team said in a statement: “On ‌the advice of his ‌medical team, Jannik Sinner will follow a course of treatment for inflammation in his knee. The decision has been ​made to have the treatment now to give Jannik the necessary ⁠time to recover before beginning ​preparations ​for 2027. As ​a result, Jannik ​will ‌be unable ​to ​compete again during the 2026 season.”