Ghosts of China Open racism controversy follow Lorenzo Musetti at Shanghai Masters as Italian claims fans intentionally coughed again to throw him off

Lorenzo Musetti was seen complaining about the crowd behavior during his Round of 16 clash against Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Shanghai Masters on Wednesday, October 8. The Italian alleged that the crowd was coughing between his first and second serves on purpose, following his actions at the China Open last month.

Musetti came under fire for his remarks during the opening-round clash against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in Beijing. He complained about the deliberate crowd coughing and was spotted saying, "Those damn Chinese...They are always coughing."

It seemed that fans had not forgotten Musetti's allegedly racist comment about the Chinese people. Tennis insider Jose Morgado shared a picture of Musetti approaching the umpire during the second set of his match against Auger-Aliassime on his X page. Morgado also claimed that the Italian tennis star asked the umpire to address the crowd's behavior.

"Musetti complaining again about the crowd coughing between his 1st and 2nd serves," Jose Morgado wrote on X. "He thinks it's on purpose after what he said. "I know I made a mistake and I said something wrong, but please say something to them," he tells the umpire."

Meanwhile, Musetti's Shanghai Masters campaign ended with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat against Auger-Aliassime in the Round of 16 match. He was knocked out by Learner Tien in the China Open after his runner-up finish in Chengdu last month.

Lorenzo Musetti shares his views on slower conditions at Shanghai Masters

Lorenzo Musetti joined the much-talked-about topic about playing conditions at the Shanghai Masters following his Round of 16 win over Luciano Darderi. Several top players, including Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz, have voiced their concerns about slower playing conditions at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena in Shanghai, but Mussetti contradicted their opinions after his second-round victory.

During his on-court post-match interview, the 23-year-old highlighted the humid conditions in Shanghai and their impact on the balls before speaking in favor of slower court conditions.

“This year also never been so humid so even the balls I think they are getting heavier and heavier with this kind of humidity," Lorenzo Musetti said, via Tennis World. "Never changed so many shirts in my life honestly! [laughing]. And I feel like when you play for like 40 minutes, it seems like you took a shower, and definitely I feel like it’s also for these conditions the balls are getting really heavier and the conditions are slower.

"But of course, I can’t complain about this. I like it, and definitely I think you need to be really a fighter and really physically to win this match," he added.

Meanwhile, with his defeat against Felix Auger-Aliassime, Lorenzo Musetti is facing a tough battle in the race to Turin for the ATP Finals this season. He is placed eighth and is only 530 points ahead of Auger-Aliassime in the live ATP rankings.