Coco Gauff said she had been left drained by the racist abuse she experienced during the China Open after suffering a shock defeat by Elise Mertens as Iga Swiatek reached the quarter-finals.
Mertens snapped her losing streak against Gauff to record her first win in six matches 6-3 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals in Beijing on Wednesday.
Gauff’s defeat came after she received what she described as an “insane” amount of racist comments on social media following a controversial point in the preceding round.
When trailing 6-3 4-1 to Mertens, Gauff told her box: “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.
“I’m going to just try to finish the match.”
In her clash against 16-year-old home player Sun Xinran on Tuesday, Gauff was serving to stay in the first set at 4-5 when Sun thought she had hit a winner, but the American had already raised her hand to stop the point as a light in the side panels around the court was flickering.
The chair umpire then ordered the point to be replayed.
Gauff took the next three points to hold for 5-5, and then dropped just one more game in the match.
Gauff suffered online abuse following her controversial victory against 16-year-old home player Sun Xinran
Gauff, who has an excellent record in China, was asked by reporters in Beijing whether she had been affected by the abuse, and she said: “It has been kind of draining, I’m not going to lie. I just turn off my phone and move on. There’s nothing you can do.
“I think today I was just a bit flat. I just didn’t play well. I think I wasn’t moving well. There were a lot of things I didn’t do well.”
The 22-year-old tried to explain the situation, saying on social media site X: “It was an unfortunate situation but it is out of my control.
“Xinran is incredible talent and player, I apologised for the situation at the end of the match and she completely understood.”
Gauff then responded to a racist reply to her post by saying: “Hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist.
“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.”
Gauff, the 2024 Beijing champion, delivered a flat performance, racking up 34 unforced errors in total as Mertens held on in impressive style, winning 10 of her last 11 service points and sealing victory with her second ace.
“She’s an incredible player, of course. I knew it was going to be a very tough match,” Mertens said.
“But I had motivation. My coach/boyfriend, it’s his birthday tomorrow. So this win is dedicated to him and all the work we do.”
Swiatek downs teen star Jovic
Earlier, Iga Swiatek broke Iva Jovic’s serve twice in the last four games to beat the 18-year-old American 6-1 6-3.
Swiatek, a six-time Grand Slam champion who has struggled at times this year, will next play Mertens.
“For sure (today), I was using more of the chances that I got,” said Swiatek, who has now won 126 of 128 WTA 1000 matches in which she won the first set.
“I was more proactive. Maybe changing the directions more instead of just being solid, more intense. When I needed that, I could play long rallies and be in defence, as well. Everything was working today.
“I feel like my game has improved,” Swiatek said reflecting on her recent form. “Obviously sometimes playing the tournament is a bit tricky. Not everything is depending on you. I believe what I’m doing makes sense moving forward. That gives me the most confidence.
“For sure when you have great results on a match, it’s always a good boost of confidence. But tennis is tough. You need to be ready for every match. Your previous results are not going to give you anything. I’m going to push no matter what and we’ll see how it goes.”
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