Want more from Front Office Sports
in your search results?
Coco Gauff did not look like herself Wednesday at the China Open.
Down in the second set to Elise Mertens, Gauff was heard telling her camp during the second set that she had no energy and felt like she was going to “pass out.” Gauff, the No. 4 player in the world, would lose to the Belgian in straight sets.
After the match, Gauff admitted that she’s struggled with online abuse she’s received over the last several days.
“It has been kind of draining, I’m not going to lie,” Gauff told reporters in Beijing. “I just turn off my phone and move on. There’s nothing you can do.”
On Monday, Gauff was accused of cheating after an incident during her match with Sun Xinran, who was playing in her home country. Serving at 4–5 in the first set, Gauff stopped a rally, claiming the electronic advertising boards were flickering. (The ad logos displayed on the boards on the sides of the court changed in the middle of the rally.)
The chair umpire ruled that the point would be replayed.
Gauff would go on to win the game, and would ultimately take the match in two sets. After the incident, Gauff dropped just one game to the 16-year-old, who was playing in her first WTA 1000 and had become a crowd favorite after upsetting two players before facing Gauff in the Round of 32.
After the match Monday, Gauff directly addressed a racist comment she received online.
“hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist,” Gauff replied to a tweet that called her a racial slur. “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.”
She also added a lengthy response to the incident, going into detail about the on-court incident, calling it an “unfortunate situation,” but saying it’s “ridiculous” to say she was being unfair for following the rules.
“I apologized for the situation at the end of the match [to Xinran] and she completely understood,” Gauff wrote. Gauff can be heard saying “sorry” to Xinran after the match, who appeared to be receptive to the apology.
Following Wednesday’s loss, Gauff also announced that she is pulling out of the Wuhan Open, another WTA 1000 event which she won last year, due to fatigue:
“I’m disappointed to withdraw from Wuhan, especially as defending champion. I love playing there. After a long year, my body needs time to rest and recover fully.”
Download the FOS App
The business of sports, in your pocket.
Scan the QR code to get the app now.
