Tennis-Gauff hits out at racist abuse after replayed point in Beijing sparks backlash

Coco Gauff said she had received an "insane" amount of racial abuse ​on social media after the two-times Grand Slam champion ​beat local teenager Sun Xinran at the ‌China ​Open on Monday in a match where a replayed point sparked an online backlash. The American won 7-5 6-1 to reach the fourth round, but was targeted after stopping ‌play during a crucial point in the first set, raising her hand to complain about a flickering advertising board just as Sun was about to put away a winner.

After a video review, the umpire ordered the point to be replayed. Gauff won ‌the replayed point and held serve for 5-5 before cruising to victory against the Chinese 16-year-old. Gauff, 22, said she ‌had received a barrage of abusive messages on social media after the match.

"You can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist," Gauff, who is Black, said on X early on Tuesday in reply to a post containing a racial slur. "The amount of racist comments/direct messages ⁠I've received ​in the last few hours ⁠is insane.

"Lastly, I'm not a cheater or a thief." Reuters has contacted the WTA, the governing body of women's tennis, and tournament organisers in Beijing ⁠for comment.

The WTA has made efforts to tackle the issue of online abuse by introducing an AI-powered system which monitors thousands of players ​and officials on social media. A study by the WTA and World Tennis showed players were subjected to over ⁠12,000 abusive posts and messages on social media in 2025, up from 8,000 posts a year earlier.

Gauff also explained that she was following the rules ⁠when ​she challenged the point. Players are allowed to request video reviews of select judgment calls, including claims a distraction may have interfered with play. The American said she had spoken to Sun about the point at the end of the ⁠match.

"Xinran's an incredible talent and player, I apologised for the situation at the end of the match and she ⁠completely understood," she wrote. "I didn't ⁠like to see her so emotional as I've been there and I really understand what it's like but this is the beginning of an incredible career. It was an honour ‌to share the court ‌in front of her home crowd."