Sports · Tennis · 9 hrs ago
Rennae Stubbs says questions about Peng Shuai must remain
Rennae Stubbs says the WTA must keep asking about Peng Shuai, the Chinese tennis player whose whereabouts and well-being remain unclear.
In November 2021, Shuai posted online that she had been involved with retired vice premier Zhang Gaoli, and information about her post was censored.
She disappeared from public view before appearing at a tennis event in China on state media later that month, then denied making sexual assault accusations in emails and interviews.
The WTA suspended its events in China, but allowed tournaments to return in 2023 despite saying it remained dissatisfied with the situation.
Journalist Jon Wertheim said there had been no public appearances or updates about Shuai for years, and that the WTA had not provided promised status updates since 2023.
Stubbs says the unanswered questions remain a problem for the WTA, and she called for people to keep asking whether Shuai is safe.
She said she did not think anything could be done, but that the issue would not go away until people knew how Shuai was doing.
Rennae Stubbs says questions about former Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai’s whereabouts and wellbeing should remain in public discussion.
Stubbs said there had been no recent public appearances by Shuai and that people should keep asking what happened to her.
Shuai posted on Weibo in November 2021 that she had been involved in an affair with retired Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.
After Shuai appeared on state media at a tennis tournament on 21 November 2021, the WTA suspended events in China, then allowed tournaments there again in 2023.
Stubbs said the issue would remain a problem for the WTA until Shuai’s wellbeing was known.
- Who
- Rennae Stubbs is urging continued attention to Peng Shuai’s situation.
- What
- Stubbs says questions about Shuai’s whereabouts and wellbeing must remain.
- When
- Stubbs made the remarks in an article published on 23 October 2026.
- Where
- Stubbs spoke on The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast. Shuai was last described as appearing at a tennis tournament in China on 21 November 2021.
- Why
- Stubbs said Shuai had not been seen publicly and that it was not known how she was doing.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Shuai posted on Weibo that she had been involved in an affair with retired Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.
Shuai appeared at a tennis tournament in China on state media.
The WTA suspended all its events in China.
The WTA allowed tournaments in China again following the Covid-19 lockdowns.
Tennis365 published Stubbs’s remarks calling for continued questions about Shuai.
- Player
- Peng Shuai
- Former official
- Zhang Gaoli, retired Chinese Vice Premier
- Weibo post
- November 2021
- State-media appearance
- 21 November 2021, at a tennis tournament in China
- WTA tournaments in China resumed
- 2023
1 source
What people are saying
I think the question is still, where is Peng Shuai and how is she doing? We haven’t seen her. They are not even trying anymore.
I think this should still be talked about. Is she okay? What happened to her? We should still be asking that question. Can we do anything about it? Absolutely not.
This is a problem for them and the WTA Tour forever. It’s not going away until we know how she is.
Years ago, I pressed the WTA on Peng’s whereabouts. I was told, effectively, ‘We know that she is in China, and we have reassurances that she is alive’. I was also told I would be kept informed of any news, updates or status changes. That was in 2023. No status updates have been forthcoming.