"Peng Shuai still nowhere to be seen" - Tennis insider hits back at WTA CEO warning players against distasteful posts towards China

WTA CEO Portia Archer warned tennis players about making controversial statements during tournaments, especially in China. Insider Jose Morgado reacted to Archer's approach and pointed out that former Chinese WTA star Peng Shuai, who briefly disappeared after making sexual assault allegations, is still missing from events in China.

Paula Badosa and Magda Linette found themselves in the middle of controversies over their actions during the Asian swing of the 2024 WTA Tour. Badosa was accused of racist behavior after a picture showing her allegedly imitating Chinese eyes went viral on social media. Meanwhile, Linette was in hot waters for making a COVID-19 joke during her campaign at the Wuhan Open.

The incidents led to new WTA CEO Portia Archer issuing a strong-worded warning to players against making such "distasteful content" regarding any host nation. Archer urged players to respect a country's culture and history and stated that any infraction on this front would not be tolerated.

Archer's message read:

“Tournaments and countries host us as their guests at considerable effort and expense, and it is of absolute importance to respect the local culture of the regions we compete in, all of which make our global Tour a success,” Archer told players. "Distasteful content of any kind (such as images, references, text, video) relating to the culture, history, or hurtful stereotypes of a group of people or a region is inconsistent with the values the WTA represents and will not be tolerated."

“Not only do such harmful actions generate negative coverage and reflect poorly for the athlete, but they also impact women’s professional tennis as a whole, along with having negative effects on the hard-working team and staff that organize WTA events. These actions can also pose a risk around the entire tournament, with security, transport, and other areas all put in potential jeopardy. There is no place for this in the WTA.”

Archer's words caught the eye of tennis insider Jose Morgado, who pointed out that Peng Shuai is still not seen at any of the tournaments in China three years after her sexual assault incident. Peng, a former WTA doubles World No. 1, accused a high-ranking Chinese official of sexual assault via a social media post in November 2021.

Peng Shuai subsequently went quiet on online platforms and was missing from the public for two weeks. She then assured fans that she was safe and stated that the sexual assault allegations were not true.

"Peng Shuai still nowhere to be seen around one of the many Chinese tennis events, though...." Morgado tweeted.

WTA CEO Archer's comment comes as China continues to be a key aspect of women's tennis

Aryna Sabalenka pictured at 2024 Wuhan Open (Source: Getty)

China is arguably the most important part of the business and schedule aspect of WTA tennis. The country dominates the Asian swing of the tour, hosting two 1000-tier, one 500-tier, and two 250-tier tournaments that offer $13.6 million in collective prize money. Even before 2024, China was an essential location for WTA.

In 2018, the organization signed a 10-year deal to award Shenzen, China, hosting rights for the WTA Finals. While the tournament was only held for one season (2019) in the Chinese city, it paid one of the largest prize pots ($14 million) in tennis history. Comparatively, the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, had a prize pot of $15.25 million.

When WTA boycotted China and pulled tournaments from the country in 2021 and 2022 due to Peng Shuai's sexual assault case, the organization suffered financial hardships. WTA called off the boycott in 2023, with the return of WTA 250 Guangzhou Open on the schedule.