Opelka voices displeasure at ATP holding events in China despite Peng Shuai scandal

American tennis star Reilly Opelka has slammed the ATP for going ahead with future tournaments in China, despite the recent controversy surrounding Chinese player Peng Shuai.

The 36-year old Peng went missing shortly after speaking out against a high-ranking party official, before resurfacing at public events in clearly staged appearances. There have been no concrete developments surrounding Peng Shuai, who has said in tightly controlled interviews that she is at home with family in Beijing.

Journalists have not been able to satisfactorily establish the precise whereabouts of the Peng, although the International Olympic Council have accepted the official version of events put forward by Chinese authorities.

While the WTA has pulled its events from China in protest over her treatment, the men’s tour has not followed suit.

“One day ATP wants to merge with WTA and the next, we are playing a full schedule in China,” Opelka tweeted alongside a shrugging emoji.

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Peng intimated that she was retired in an interview with L’Equipe conducted in the presence of a Chinese official earlier this year.

“Considering my age, my multiple surgeries and the pandemic that forced me to stop for so long, I believe it will be very difficult to regain my physical level,” she told L’Equipe.