BEIJING — Lorenzo Musetti has turn out to be the newest tennis star to apologize to Chinese language followers.
“I am truly sorry. I respect you deeply, I feel at home here, and I value the warmth and kindness I have always received from you,” the 23-year-old Italian mentioned in a message he posted Saturday on social media.
Musetti was irritated by coughing within the crowd throughout his round-of-32 win on Friday towards Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on the China Open in Beijing.
“I would like to sincerely apologize for what I said in frustration yesterday during my match,” Musetti wrote on Instagram. “My words were directed only at a few individuals in the crowd who were coughing repeatedly and disturbing the play. They were never, in any way, meant for the Chinese people. It happened in a moment of stress and tension in the second tiebreak, but still, this is no excuse at all.”
He added: “I realize that the way I expressed myself was wrong and inappropriate, and it hurt many Chinese fans’ feelings.”
American tennis star Taylor Townsend apologized on Sept. 17 for making disparaging feedback about Chinese language meals earlier than america performed Kazakhstan on the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Shenzhen, China.
Townsend had posted movies of native dishes together with bullfrogs and turtles and joked she would want to “talk to HR” in regards to the high quality of the meals. She took to Instagram once more to apologize after going through a backlash on-line and mentioned “everyone has been so kind and so gracious.”
