British number one Katie Boulter is out of the Wuhan Open after a first-round defeat by Russian Diana Shnaider.

After a competitive first set, Boulter lost her serve four times in the second as world number 13 Shnaider convincingly won 6-3 6-1 in one hour and 30 minutes.

This has been a largely disappointing season for Boulter, who is ranked 54th in the world and has posted just two wins across the four Grand Slam tournaments.

Since suffering a first-round exit at Wimbledon in June, Boulter has won just three of the nine singles matches she has played on the WTA Tour.

This one came at a difficult time for Boulter, whose grandfather, Brian, died last week.

He was described by Boulter’s brother James as “Katie’s biggest supporter” and Boulter said in a social media tribute before competing in Wuhan that she had experienced “a tough week”.

Meanwhile, Russia and Belarus remain banned from competing in the Davis Cup and BJK Cup team competitions following a vote among World Tennis member nations on Tuesday.

The two countries were suspended by World Tennis – formerly known as the International Tennis Federation (ITF) – in March 2022 after Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, backed by its ally Belarus.

At the world governing body’s annual general meeting in Kazakhstan, officials from 128 nations voted to keep the suspensions of the Russian Tennis Federation and the Belarus Tennis Federation in place.

The vote for the two nations to remain excluded from World Tennis competitions comes despite the International Olympic Committee (IOC) no longer recommending international federations continue restrictions on Russian and Belarusian athletes.

Players including French Open semi-finalist Shnaider, along with Russian former world number one Daniil Medvedev and Belarusian world number two Aryna Sabalenka, will continue to play as neutrals under ATP and WTA rules.