The girls’s skilled tennis tour is ending its suspension of tournaments in China that was initiated in late 2021 over issues about Grand Slam doubles champion Peng Shuai’s well-being.

The WTA introduced Thursday that it's going to return to competitors in China this season, though two of its key requests have been by no means met: an opportunity to fulfill with Peng, and a radical, clear investigation of her sexual assault accusations in opposition to a high-ranking Chinese authorities official.

Who is Peng Shuai?

Peng is a former professional tennis participant who reached No. 1 within the WTA rankings in doubles in 2014 and made it as excessive as No. 14 in singles in 2011. In doubles, Peng gained main championships at Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014; her greatest Grand Slam displaying in singles was a run to the semifinals on the U.S. Open in 2014. In all, she gained 23 WTA titles in doubles and two in singles; she additionally represented China at three Summer Olympics. Her profession prize cash is listed by the WTA as greater than $9.5 million. Now 37, Peng final competed at a match in Doha, Qatar, in February 2020.

Why was there international concern for Peng’s well-being?

Peng dropped out of public view after saying in a social media publish in November 2021 that former vice premier Zhang Gaoli pressured her to have intercourse. Chinese authorities rapidly eliminated the publish. News of the primary #MeToo case to achieve the political realm in China was not reported by native media and on-line dialogue of it was extremely censored. “Where is Peng Shuai?” turned a trending subject on social media as concern and outrage grew. Peng ultimately tried to recant her accusations, together with in a managed interview on the Beijing Olympics in February 2022, and he or she made some orchestrated appearances throughout these Winter Games. But there haven't been reviews of public sightings of her since then.

When and why did the WTA cease holding tournaments in China?

The WTA, which is predicated in St. Petersburg, Florida, pulled its occasions from China in December 2021, saying it might not return till somebody from the tour might meet with Peng and till her allegations have been correctly investigated. Neither of these issues has occurred. In the previous, about 10 girls’s professional tennis tournaments have been held every year in China, producing hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in income for the WTA.

What modified?

WTA Chairman and CEO Steve Simon mentioned in an interview with The Associated Press that “what has changed with it is that we have received assurances from people who are close to her, that we’ve been in contact with, that she is safe and living with her family in Beijing. … First and foremost, her safety is the first priority, and we do have assurances that is the case.” Simon additionally mentioned he hopes “more progress can be made” by returning to China, as a result of the present technique of staying away “doesn’t make sense.”

Are feminine tennis gamers pleased with the return to China?

Simon known as it an “organizational decision” that included dialogue and suggestions with gamers and match officers. “We’ve got players from over 80 countries, so there’s no shortage of different views of the world and positions on issues and topics we have,” he mentioned. “Through reach-out to us, as well as our reaching out to athletes to find out their positions, the great majority of the athletes were supportive and wanted to see a return back to the region and felt it was time to go back. … There’s certainly some that didn’t agree but the great majority did.”

When will the subsequent girls’s tennis match be performed in China?

A schedule is predicted to be launched within the coming weeks. Play ought to start in China in September, after the Grand Slam season ends with the U.S. Open in New York, and can embrace the WTA Finals in Shenzhen.

— Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis author since 2002.

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