American women's tennis star Coco Gauff says she was bombarded with racially charged comments on social media this week following her 7-5, 6-1 third-round win over Sun Xinran in Beijing's China Open. Gauff stopped a rally during the first set after electronic advertising boards around the court flickered while striking a ball. Xinran, a 16-year-old sensation on the junior circuit, appeared to win the point before the chair umpire ruled the point should be replayed.
"Hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist," Gauff said in a reply on X after the match. "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." Gauff, who's ranked No. 4 in the world after bowing out of last month's US Open in the semifinals, took control of the match from there and moved on to play Elise Mertens in Wednesday's Round of 16.
In an Instagram post, Gauff detailed her reasoning for stopping the point. "We are told before the matches we are allowed to continue to finish play so KEEP IT MIND I am thinking about all of this while i'm playing the point.," Gauff wrote. "Anything can be challenged after the point is over (as in most sports you can review a call after the play is over, I personally think is the correct rule).
If I would've lost the point my opponent is also free to do the same thing and ask for a replay and she would've have been completely in her right to do so." She continued, "when it flickered again I raised my hands before she hit her shot because this is when I was sure I saw the light flicker and it wasn't my mind doing tricks lol (which again doesn't matter because anything can be challenged after the point)." Xinran won the junior US Open last month in New York and received a wild-card entry from tournament organizers. It was her official WTA Tour debut. "It was an unfortunate situation but it is out of my control, the think pieces and calling me an unfair is ridiculous when those are the rules," Gauff wrote.
"I did not make them, I think it's weird i'm getting hate for following the rules. Xinran is incredible talent and player, I apologized for the situation at the end of the match and she completely understood. "I did not like to see her so emotional as l've been there and I really understand what it is like but this is just the beginning of an incredible career.
It was an honor to share the court in front of her home crowd."
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