Tennis player disappears after accusing powerful politician of sexual harassment

China was silent on Monday about growing concern about the fate of tennis player Peng Shuai, who has been keeping a low profile since she was accused of sexual assault by an influential politician.

On Sunday, the WTA called for a "full, fair, transparent and without censorship investigation" into Ping's allegations.

When asked to comment on the growing concern about the Chinese player's fate, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Monday: "I have not heard of the issue you are talking about."

He continued, "This is not a diplomatic issue," without adding any comment about the former world number one in the doubles competition.

And Ping, 35, the former Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion in the doubles, had earlier this month accused former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her, while reports about this issue are now blocked from the Internet in China.

Also, searches for her account on the Chinese platform "Weibo" parallel to Twitter did not yield any results, although the account was still available via the website link.

WTA president Steve Simon said in a statement that what was happening with Bing was "extremely concerning" and called for her allegations to be "treated with the utmost seriousness."

Current and former players sympathized with Bing's case, such as American Chris Evert, who has 18 major titles, who wrote on Twitter: "These accusations are very worrying. I've known Bing since she was 14. We all have to worry; this is serious. Where is she? Is she safe? We would appreciate any information on her."

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