Coco Gauff said she received an “insane” amount of racist ­comments on social media ­following a ­controversial point in her China Open match against the home player Sun Xinran.

Gauff stopped a rally after ­electronic advertising boards ­lining the court flickered during a point late in the first set of her 7-5, 6-1 third-round victory over Sun, a 16-year-old who recently won the US Open junior title.

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“Hey everyone, you can dislike me or disagree about what happened without being racist,” Gauff said in a reply on X. “The amount of racist comments/dms I’ve received in the last few hours is insane. Lastly, I’m not a cheater or a thief.”

Sun appeared about to win the point when Gauff stopped playing. The chair umpire then ordered the point to be replayed. Gauff, a two-time grand slam champion ranked No 4, went on to take control of the match on Monday.

“I think it’s weird I’m ­getting hate for ­following the rules. ­Xinran is [an] incredible talent and player, I ­apologised for the situation at the end of the match and she ­completely understood,” Gauff added in another post.

Sun, who was given a wildcard entry by tournament organisers and was making her WTA Tour debut, appeared distraught after the loss. Gauff, who reached the fourth round of Wimbledon as a 15-year-old in 2019, sympathised with Sun. “I did not like to see her so emotional as I’ve been there and I really ­understand what it is like but this is just the ­beginning of an incredible career,” Gauff said. “It was an honour to share the court in front of her home crowd.”