Tennis-Gauff exits China Open after 'draining' few days, withdraws from Wuhan (updated)

Matrix Service

07/10/2026 14:08

Gauff upset by Mertens in China Open Round of 16
Social media backlash followed Gauff's replayed point call
Gauff withdraws from Wuhan Open due to fatigue
WTA condemns racial abuse targeting Gauff
Adds Gauff's Wuhan Open withdrawal from paragraph 2-5, Adds bullet points
BEIJING, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Coco Gauff exited the China Open in the last 16 on Wednesday, suffering a 6-3 6-3 defeat by Belgium's Elise Mertens after what the American third seed described as a draining few days.
Hours after the upset, Gauff withdrew from the Wuhan Open, a WTA 1000 hardcourt event she won last year, citing fatigue.

        Gauff, 22, revealed after her victory over Chinese 16-year-old Sun Xinran on Monday that she had received an "insane" amount of racial abuse on social media following a match in which a replayed point sparked an online backlash.
"It has been kind of draining, I'm not going to lie." she told a news conference. "I just turn off my phone and move on. There's nothing you can do."

ONLINE ABUSE
She beat Sun 7-5 6-1 to reach the fourth round, but was targeted online after stopping play during a key point in the first set, raising her hand to complain about a flickering advertising board as Sun was about to put away a winner.
After a video review, the umpire ordered the point to be replayed. Gauff won the point and held serve for 5-5.
The WTA condemned the abusive comments she received.
"There is no place for racism, discrimination, or abuse in tennis," the WTA told Reuters in a statement.
"We are appalled by the racial abuse directed at Coco Gauff and are in contact with her to offer our full support."
Gauff had beaten the 30-year-old Mertens in their five previous meetings. The 13th seed will next face six-times Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek.
Gauff's challenge unravelled amid a barrage of errors, with the 2024 Beijing champion committing 34 unforced errors, including eight double faults, during the 78-minute defeat.
"I think I just didn't play well," Gauff said. "I think I wasn't moving well. There were a lot of things I didn't do well. I thought Elise played well on the big points, made me play a big ball, yeah."
Gauff said she was sorry to miss the Wuhan tournament.
"I'm disappointed to withdraw from Wuhan, especially as the defending champion," the two-time Grand Slam champion said in a statement. "After a long year, my body needs some time to rest and recover."
Gauff joined world number one Elena Rybakina, who withdrew due to a foot injury, in pulling out of the Wuhan Open, which runs from October 12-18.

 (Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare and Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; editing by Pritha Sarkar and Ed Osmond)
 ((PearlJosephine.Nazare@thomsonreuters.com;))