"It's not an Asian mockery, but playing with my wrinkles"... Explaining absurdity of "World's No. 2."

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Spain's Paula Badosa, once ranked second in the world in women's tennis, has been embroiled in a controversy over racism after a photo was posted on social networking sites that appeared to mimic Asians.

According to the British daily Telegraph on the 9th, Badosa participated in the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour China Open (total prize money of 8.95 million dollars) held in Beijing last week.

The beginning was a photo posted by Badosa's coach Paul Toledo Bagh on his SNS. The photo showed Badosa making an eye-wrenching expression with chopsticks at the ends of both eyes.

The eye-opening gesture is one of the most representative acts of Asian racism, and the photo was immediately embroiled in a controversy over racism.

As the controversy intensified, Badosa initially explained, "I didn't imitate Asians, I played with my face and wrinkles," and claimed, "I love Asia and I have a lot of Asian friends."

Nevertheless, as the controversy did not fade, he said, "I did not know that my actions could offend racism. I'm so sorry. "It's my mistake," he said. "I'm responsible for everything. He posted an apology on his SNS, saying, "I will learn more from this mistake."

Later, he withdrew from this week's tournament in Wuhan, China, citing gastroenteritis.

The Telegraph noted that there are concerns that Badosa's actions could cause problems with Chinese authorities.

Reporter Lee Yu Na from Digital News Team.