Chris Evert Comes to Coco Gauff’s Defense Amid ‘Turmoil’ Over Racist Abuse: “Why Are the Haters Attacking Her?”

Coco Gauff crashed out of the fourth round of the China Open following an incident during her third-round match against Sun Xinran. Gauff stopped a point at 4-5 in the first set after seeing a flickering light on the boards around the court. She raised her arm before Sun hit what she thought was a winner.

The umpire eventually called the point a replay, which the two-time Grand Slam singles champion won. In the aftermath of this incident, Gauff had to deal with an “insane” amount of racist abuse, which was “draining,” as she admitted the same following her defeat to Elise Mertens in the round of 16.

Gauff has pulled out of the Wuhan Open, where she is the reigning champion (she defeated Jessica Pegula last year). Reacting to the whole thing, 18-time Grand Slam singles champion Chris Evert took to X and slammed the haters.

Why are the “haters” attacking @CocoGauff? She did everything within the rules. Honestly, Coco is the most genuine, thoughtful, humble human being you’ll ever find. She is loved by everyone in the Tennis world. It’s really disturbing to see her going through this turmoil.

Check out her post here:

Why are the "haters" attacking @CocoGauff ? She did everything within the rules. Honestly, Coco is the most genuine, thoughtful, humble human being you’ll ever find. She is loved by everyone in the Tennis world. It’s really disturbing to see her going through this turmoil.#kindness

— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert) October 8, 2026

Gauff was chasing her second title of the season after her win at the Cincinnati Open (defeating Pegula). Before ending her title drought, she played the final of the Miami Open and the Italian Open, losing them to Aryna Sabalenka and Elina Svitolina, respectively.

Rennae Stubbs on Coco Gauff’s Wuhan Open withdrawal

Serena Williams’ coach Rennae Stubbs has also rallied behind Coco Gauff after the China Open controversy. She took to Substack and wrote that for tennis players, the flickering lights are genuinely distracting, and that it’s a player’s right to call for video reviews if such things happen.

The amount of heat thrown at Coco after this incident has been absolutely insane. It shows the worst of social media: the sycophants, and the “tennis fans” who watch the sport once or twice a year. It takes a remarkably strong person not to let the things said about them online get under their skin. Today, in her match against Mertens, we saw what the last 48 hours have done to her.

The Wuhan Open starts on October 12. Gauff has played twice in the tournament so far, reaching the semifinals on her debut in 2024 and winning the title the following year.

Here’s where it lands. Coco has pulled out of Wuhan. She was set to return as the defending champion, and the fans there, people who have waited all year to see her, now won’t get that chance. By all accounts, she’s exhausted and tired of the hate.

Rennae Stubbs added

A similar incident happened during Novak Djokovic‘s quarterfinal match against Alexander Zverev. Sascha saw the lights flicker and called for the video review after losing the point. Djokovic ended up losing his cool, calling the rule “stupid” during his argument with Zverev and the chair umpire.

Had Gauff defeated Elise Mertens, she would have faced six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals. Swiatek, the champion in Beijing in 2024, is bidding to win her second title of the season following her win at the Canadian Open (beat Elena Rybakina).

After the Wuhan Open, the 25-year-old will compete in the Ningbo Open for the first time. She wants to do everything possible to qualify for the WTA Finals. World No. 1 Rybakina, who suffered an opening-round exit in Beijing, withdrew from the Wuhan Open, where she is a two-time quarterfinalist, reaching the stage in 2019 and 2025.

Also read: Andy Roddick Says Daniil Medvedev ‘Deserved to Be Defaulted’ After Novak Djokovic China Open Match