Coco Gauff said she was subjected to a barrage of racist abuse on social media after the two-time Grand Slam champion defeated young home player Sun Xinran in the third round of the China Open, a match that featured a replayed point which sparked an online backlash.
The American won 7-5, 6-1 to reach the fourth round, but became a target after she stopped play at a crucial moment in the opening set. She raised her hand to flag a flashing advertising board just as Sun was preparing to close out the point with a winner.
After reviewing video, the umpire ordered the point replayed. Gauff won the replayed point and held serve to level at 5-5 before going on to beat the 16-year-old Chinese opponent.
Speaking after the match, Gauff said she had received a wave of abusive messages on social media.
"You can dislike me or disagree with what happened without being racist," Gauff, who is Black, wrote on X early Tuesday in reply to a post containing a racial slur.
"The amount of racist comments/messages I've received in the last few hours is insane.
"At the end of the day, I am not a cheater or a thief."
The WTA has sought to tackle online abuse by introducing an AI-powered system that monitors thousands of players and officials across social media.
A WTA and World Tennis study found players were subjected to more than 12,000 abusive posts and messages on social media in 2025, up from 8,000 the previous year.
Gauff also explained that she had followed the rules when disputing the point. Players are permitted to request video review of certain rulings, including claims that a distraction may have affected a point.
The 22-year-old said she had spoken to Sun about the point after the match ended.
"Xinran is a talent and an amazing player. I apologized for the situation at the end of the match and she completely understood," she wrote.
"I didn't want to see her emotional like that because I've been there and truly understand how it feels, but this is the beginning of an amazing career. It was an honor to play in front of her home crowd."
