Coco Gauff Eliminated from China Open Amid Controversy

Coco Gauff was eliminated from the China Open in the round of 16, falling to Elise Mertens 6-3, 6-3. Gauff admitted to feeling drained during the match, telling her support team, "I have no energy. I’m trying, I have no energy. I can’t see the ball, I feel like I’m going to pass out." She added after the match that the preceding days had been "kind of draining," attributing it to an "insane" amount of racist comments she received on social media.

The controversy stemmed from an incident in her third-round match against 16-year-old Xinran Sun. During a point, Gauff stopped playing due to flickering electronic advertising boards. The chair umpire ordered the point to be replayed, a decision Gauff questioned. Following the match, which Gauff won 7-5, 6-1, she addressed the online abuse, stating, "the amount of racist comments/dms I’ve received in the last few hours is insane." She clarified that she is "not a cheater or a thief" and was following the rules, apologizing for the situation to Sun, who she described as having "incredible talent and player."

Gauff's performance against Mertens was marked by 34 unforced errors to Mertens’ 11, and eight double faults compared to her opponent’s two. Four of those double faults occurred when Gauff was broken in the final game of the first set.

Prior to the China Open match, Gauff had a strong record against Mertens, having won all five of their previous encounters.