Overview

• During his round-of-32 match in Beijing, Musetti mimicked coughing and complained in Italian about spectators, with local outlets reporting he also appeared to mouth "damn Chinese."
• He said the remark was aimed at a few individuals who were disrupting play and apologized for language he acknowledged was wrong and hurtful to Chinese fans.
• Video of the exchange circulated widely on social media, prompting criticism and coverage by Chinese state and local media such as The Paper and the Global Times.
• Despite the incident, the world No. 9 beat Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 7-6, 6-7, 6-4 and is set to face Adrian Mannarino in the last 16 of the China Open.
• The controversy fits a recent pattern of cultural-sensitivity issues for visiting players in China, including Taylor Townsend, who apologized for comments about local food in Shenzhen and later withdrew from Beijing citing scheduling.