About seven months ago, a redditor in r/tennis asked “Where the hell is Peng Shuai?” I don’t hang out on reddit, but the question showed up recently when I googled “Peng Shuai” to see if there was anything new online about her situation.  An iconic photo of Peng was included in the post, with the troubling caption: “Nobody cares anymore but still a periodic reminder.”  

The tennis world has indeed apparently moved on from the story of former world number #1 doubles champion Peng Shuai, who lit up the courts with her joyful smile and clear passion for the game. The hashtag campaign #WhereIsPengShuai has long since disappeared, even though we still don’t know where she is. Several top tennis players, including Serena Williams, insisted at the time when Peng first disappeared that they must not be silent about her. Serena tweeted on November 19, 2021:  “I am devastated and shocked to hear about the news of my peer, Peng Shuai.  I hope she is safe and found as soon as possible. This must be investigated, and we must not stay silent.” We haven’t seen any other public statements about Peng Shuai from Serena since.

On November 16, 2021, Naomi Osaka wrote on Twitter that she was “recently informed of a fellow tennis player [Peng, who went] missing shortly after revealing that she has been sexually abused.” Osaka added, “censorship is never ok at any cost, I hope Peng Shuai and her family are safe and ok. I’m in shock of the current situation and I’m sending love and light her way.”

The 2026 US Open would be a great opportunity to revisit Peng and her story, and not just because of the dramatic storylines emerging almost daily at the Open (why not add #WhereIsPengShuai into the mix?) Some of Peng’s initial supporters in the tennis world are retiring or likely to do so soon, and so they might be less concerned about possibly ruffling Chinese Communist Party feathers by speaking out now in support of Peng.  

Novak Djokovic expressed concern shortly after Peng’s disappearance in November 2021, saying at the time it was “shocking” how few details were known about her situation following her Weibo post accusing a high-ranking former Chinese Communist Party official of sexual assault. Now Djokovic may be nearing the end of his professional career. The thirty-nine-year-old lost a physically excruciating match in the first round of the US Open to 49th-ranked Mariano Navone from Argentina; his body seemed to be saying, enough.  

If Djokovic were to give a nod to #WhereIsPengShuai now he risks little and could make a difference in reminding the world (and Peng, indirectly, who might at some point learn of the effort) that Peng hasn’t been forgotten, and that the tennis community cares. Perhaps the 41-year-old top Swiss player Stan Wawrinka, who lost in the first round of the Open after receiving a late main-draw wildcard, could join him?  Wawrinka announced that 2026 will be his final year on the professional tour. 

Soon after Peng Shuai’s disappearance in November 2021, Wawrinka joined other top tennis players in the #WhereIsPengShuai social media blitz; on Nov. 18, 2021, he also tweeted: “Where is Peng Shuai.” 

As Wawrinka continues his farewell tour, it’s clear that he and Peng Shuai have something enduring in common: a deep love for the game.  Wawrinka’s love of tennis, which he’s expressed with great fervor during his final run, is a reminder that Peng Shuai did not leave tennis on her own terms.  Playing tennis brought her much joy. During an interview at the Australian Open in January 2018, she laughed and declared with a big smile, “I love tennis. I just want to be on the court and fight, sweat. I just want to be happy on the court.”  

When Peng announced her “retirement” from professional tennis in February 2022 during a predictably staged interview with a French media outlet in conjunction with the Beijing 2022 Olympics, circumstances suggested that she effectively had no choice in the matter. Peng’s player profile is still up on the WTA website though, which curiously notes her status as “inactive” rather than “retired.” 

Peng is now 40 years old, but there’s no reason to think she couldn’t have continued to play doubles professionally since she was disappeared nearly five years ago. Her former partner from Taiwan, Hsieh Su-Wei, is also 40 and active on the WTA tour. In late August 2026, Hsieh and Latvian tennis star Jelena Ostapenko teamed up and reached the doubles semi-finals at the Cincinnati Open.  

We don’t know where Peng is, or how she is. There have been rumors of possible sightings and “assurances” from interested parties that she is safe in Beijing, but there has been no independent confirmation of her whereabouts.  We know that she is not free to speak or write publicly. Peng is still being controlled by CCP officials and quite likely International Tennis Federation officials and/or IOC members who are close to the CCP.  Peng hasn’t been able to re-establish contact with her friends on the WTA tour, and she’s been cut off from the game and profession she loved so much.

 Perhaps Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka could invite Peng to the Swiss Basel Indoors 2026 tournament next month, where Stan will bid farewell to tennis and be celebrated. The organizers of the tournament wrote about Stan that “He would have liked to keep playing forever. But Basel marks the end of the line for three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka as he says goodbye to the game.”  Peng probably would have liked to keep playing forever too.  And when the time came, say goodbye in her own way and on her own terms. 

         What can we do? At a minimum we should keep asking: “Where the hell is Peng Shuai?” 

AJW 9/7/26