“We had an intense week there,” Siegemund said. Peng won her only tournament with Siegemund in Guangzhou, China, in September 2019. “She has a really good eye, really good strokes - a different, but great, player.”īesides her two Grand Slam titles in doubles - both achieved with Taiwanese partner Hsieh Su-wei - Peng also reached the Australian Open final in 2017 with Andrea Hlavackova. But she had a great career and she had amazing results in her career,” Siegemund said. Peng has an unusual playing style featuring two-handed grips on both forehands and backhands. 1 ranking in doubles in February 2014, Peng became the first Chinese player - male or female - to reach the top spot in either singles or doubles. Introduced to tennis at the age of 8 by an uncle, the 35-year-old Peng is an admirer of John McEnroe and has a lucky cow on her tennis bag to honor her birth in a year of the ox. It’s a very dangerous situation for everybody - even speaking up,” Siegemund said. It’s good that a lot of people are talking about this. Siegemund also noted that China usually hosts several WTA tournaments each year. It’s just concerning that she kind of really disappeared. But in the very first place, it just needs to be made sure that she’s OK. “In the end, all this needs to be investigated further. You don’t know what is true, what is not true,” Siegemund said. I hope she is fine.”Ĭhina’s Foreign Ministry on Friday stuck to its line that it wasn’t aware of the controversy surrounding Peng, while White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Chinese authorities should “provide independent and verifiable proof of her whereabouts and that she is safe.”Ī social media campaign with the hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai has been trending on Twitter as players like Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams have spoken out. But I think the more people come together and speak up, that’s really important. … I can’t believe that this is happening in the 21st century. Off court she’s just a sweet person - more introverted, more quiet - but a super nice and humble person. “She has also a great sense for the game. “Very determined,” was the way German player Laura Siegemund, one of Peng’s former doubles partners, described her in a phone interview with The Associated Press. Her hard-earned grit carried her to 23 tour-level doubles titles, including at Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014. Ultimately, she was taken away in a wheelchair.įor a player who overcame heart surgery at the age of 12, quitting doesn’t come lightly to the trailblazing tennis standout, who has disappeared after accusing a former top Chinese official of sexually assaulting her. Only then, with her body pushed to the absolute limit - maybe even beyond the limit - did Peng retire from the match that marked the pinnacle of her singles career. Six more points until she eventually collapsed to the ground and Caroline Wozniacki, her opponent in that 2014 match, came around the net to check on her. Helped off the court and diagnosed with heat stroke, doctors told her to quit. She leaned against a wall and wiped away tears. She paused between points to clutch at her left thigh and put her weight on her racket as if it were a cane. Open semifinals, Peng Shuai refused to give up. Struggling to stay upright as suffocating heat and humidity drained her energy in the U.S.
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