Peng Shuai appearance fails to address concerns for her wellbeing, says WTA

Tennis star retracts sexual assault claims in first foreign media interview

Peng Shuai has denied making allegations of sexual assault in her first media interview since concerns over her welfare began.

The Women’s Tennis Association has reiterated its call for an investigation into the welfare of Peng Shuai and said a public appearance by the Chinese star on Sunday still did not address its concerns about her wellbeing.

Peng said a message she had posted on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform, in early November in which she accused the former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault had been “misunderstood”.