WTA Tour set to return to China in 2023 following suspension over Peng Shuai situation
WTA Tour has suspended the 2020 season in China on the pretext that Peng Shuai allegedly abused her position at the tennis association and forced her daughter to play for an unknown third-party.
The World Tennis Association (WTA) Tour is expected to resume the 2020 season when the final round of the Asian Tour in Changsha resumes on Sunday, March 17.
The WTA Tour is expected to resume the 2020 season when the final round of the Asian Tour in Changsha resumes on Sunday, March 17.
On Monday, WTA and the local tennis association confirmed that the 2020 season was in jeopardy over the alleged abuse of authority at the end of the season.
The incident followed the death of the president of the Association of Chinese Tennis, Liu Jian, who was found dead after suffering a severe injury at the end of the season.
The local Association of Chinese Tennis reportedly imposed a series of bans on the three top players of the season, including Chang Kai-chen (China), Yan Ziwei (China) and Peng Shuai (China), over allegations of sexual harassment, intimidation and for not supporting the Association.
They imposed more restrictions on the players after Yan was found to have taken part in a training session with the then-vice-president of the WTA Tour, Wang Qiang, when Wan was already suspended.
In response, the Association of Chinese Tennis said its executive committee had suspended a series of measures that had been imposed on the players and suspended Yan from participating in official functions, including the final of the tour.
It then imposed a series of sanctions on the three players that included prohibiting them from participating in meetings of the Executive Committee of the association, and removing them from the WTA Tour roster.
The WTA Tour announced that it is suspending the 2020 season in China on the pretext that Peng Shuai allegedly abused her position at the tennis association and forced her daughter to play for an unknown third-party at the end of the season. The association is also considering suspending the Asian Tour in China.
The statement was issued on Monday on the day following the death of the president of the Association of Chinese Tennis, Liu Jian, who was found dead after suffering a severe injury at the end of the season.
The association is considering suspending the