Peng Shuai, who was struggling to stay upright in the U.S. Open semifinals as oppressive heat and humidity sapped her vitality, refused to give up.
She took a breather between points to hold her left thigh and lean on her racket like a cane. She leaned against a wall, wiping her tears away.
Doctors advised her to retire after assisting her off the court and diagnosing her with heat stroke. Peng, on the other hand, returned for more. Caroline Wozniacki, her opponent in that 2014 match, came across the net to check on her and she eventually dropped on the ground.
Peng retired from the match that represented the height of her singles career only after her body had been stretched to its ultimate limit — perhaps even beyond it.
She was eventually wheeled away in a wheelchair.
For a tennis player who underwent heart surgery at the age of 12, retiring is a difficult decision. She has vanished after accusing a former top Chinese official of sexually assaulting her.
Her tenacity and a one-of-a-kind playing style, which included two-handed forehand and backhand grips on both forehands and backhands, helped her win 23 tour-level doubles titles, including Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014.
Peng, 35, was introduced to tennis by an uncle when she was eight years old. She admires John McEnroe and has a lucky cow on her tennis bag to commemorate her birth in the year of the ox.
According to her WTA Tour bio, she enjoys Chinese cuisine, reading, shopping, and swimming, and she “considers herself quiet.”
Peng became the first Chinese player — male or female — to reach the top spot in either singles or doubles when she won the No. 1 ranking in doubles in February 2014.
Peng won two Grand Slam doubles titles with Taiwanese partner Hsieh Su-wei, and she also reached the Australian Open final with Andrea Hlavackova in 2017.
Peng won two victories — in Tianjin in 2016 and Nanchang in 2017 — and finished runner-up in seven tournaments in singles, in addition to her U.S. Open semifinal performance.
Peng reached the fourth round of Wimbledon three times in singles, the fourth round of the Australian Open twice, and the third round of the French Open twice, attempting to follow in the footsteps of Li Na, a fellow Chinese player and Asia’s first Grand Slam singles champion.
In August 2011, she was ranked No. 14 in singles.
Peng represented China at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, as well as the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
When China hosted the Asian Games in Guangzhou in 2010, she won three medals: gold in singles, silver in the team event, and bronze in doubles.
She played her final match in Qatar in February 2020, while not being officially retired.
