"Where is Peng Shuai?" - Patrick McEnroe reminds fans of Chinese player's sexual assault allegations on its first-year anniversary

Tennis doubles specialist Patrick McEnroe recently reminded fans of the disappearance of retired tennis star Peng Shuai after she made some sexual assault charges.

Shuai, a tennis player from China, was a force to be reckoned with on the courts. She is a three-time Olympian who has amassed 25 tour titles over the course of her career. Her ground-breaking success has aided in raising the profile of women's tennis in China. However, last November, the 35-year-old disappeared.

After publicly accusing a former Chinese Communist official of sexual assault back in November 2021, she disappeared. Shuai said in a post on the Chinese social media platform Weibo that former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli forced her to have sex with him. The post was promptly removed from the internet.

However, she later recanted her claims in a carefully crafted interview with French sports magazine L'Equipe in February 2022, announcing that she was leaving competitive tennis. Following the incident, the WTA suspended all of its tournaments in China and Hong Kong, and Shuai has not been seen in public since.

In light of this, tennis icon John McEnroe's brother Patrick McEnroe used social media to remind followers about the Chinese player's allegations and raise questions about her whereabouts.

"A year ago today…Peng Shuai posted that she had been sexually assaulted. She was last seen publicly in February this year. #WhereIsPengShuai?" McEnroe wrote.

John Wertheim, a well-known tennis journalist, also expressed his opinion on the issue and criticized the WTA for not having a thorough inquiry and for bringing back the tournaments in China in 2023.

"A year ago today Peng Shuai took to social media with an account of sexual assault. The @WTA demanded “a full and fair investigation.” That never happened. The player’s health/safety remains a source of concern. And…WTA is returning to China in 2023. What a moral failure," Wertheim wrote.

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"Tennis has transformed my life, brought me joy, it is sometimes difficult to know how to say goodbye" - Peng Shuai

Peng Shuai in action at the 2020 Australian Open.

In an interview with the French magazine L'Equipe in February, Peng Shuai announced her retirement from tennis. The Chinese tennis star hailed the sport for its importance in her life and stated that she will always be a tennis player even if she no longer competes in professional tournaments.

"Tennis has transformed my life, brought me joy, challenges and so much more. It is sometimes difficult to know how to say goodbye and to retire," Shuai said, adding, "Many people ask me this question. Even if I no longer participate in professional competitions, I will forever be a tennis player."