Overview
- Lorenzo Musetti retired hurt in his Beijing quarterfinal against Lerner Tien and was booed as he left the court, according to Tennis365.
- The backlash stems from his round-of-32 match on Friday, when he mimicked coughing and was accused by local media of mouthing a derogatory phrase about Chinese people.
- Videos of the incident circulated widely on social platforms and were covered by Chinese outlets, prompting accusations of racism.
- Musetti issued a public Instagram apology on Saturday, saying his words were aimed at a few disruptive spectators and not at Chinese people, and acknowledged they were wrong and inappropriate.
- No formal disciplinary action had been reported, and the episode follows another recent apology in China from American player Taylor Townsend over comments about local food.