boom!
The audience stood up, raised their arms and shouted, the golden sunshine surged and boiled in the rolling heat wave. Then, Gawain clenched his fists, and his momentum reached its peak.
Forty-four beats.
After a long round of forty-four shots, at the end of the fierce battle, Gao Wen relied on an incredible forehand straight back shot to score the winning point.
Then, match point appeared.
Tie-break, small score, "6:3".
Gao Wen took the lead and got three consecutive match points.
The score seems to be a huge gap, but in fact, Gao Wen only has one break point advantage. After just saving his second serve point, the next two points will be Djokovic's serve. As long as the world's No. 1 can If the hair is successfully maintained, the pressure will return to Gao Wen's side.
The situation is still anxious.
But this time, neither Gawain nor Djokovic seemed to take any drastic actions.
Gawain had no time to celebrate, and Djokovic had no time to be upset. The forty-four-beat round put the two players into anaerobic state, and the physical exertion was severe. However, the game was not over yet, and they still needed to continue fighting. This meant However, low-level mistakes may occur on either side.
Therefore, although this point was very anxious and intense, after the score ended, both players were panting and no one relaxed their nerves.
In fact, Djokovic was a little angry——
Angry with myself.
The tactics have been formulated in advance and strictly implemented. The victory in the first set is the best proof.
Although the score of "6:4" seemed very close, the entire first set was actually under the control of Djokovic, and he believed that he could win.
This feeling had never appeared in the previous five games, which also meant that the tactics were correct and worked, turning the situation around.
Including the second set, there were slight fluctuations, but overall, it was still within Djokovic's control. It was an accident that he lost in the end.
So, what happened in the deciding set?
My control over the game just slipped out of my hands little by little. The further I got to the back, the more pressure I felt, and then... the match point appeared.
what happened?
It shouldn’t be!
Djokovic is dissatisfied with himself, very, very dissatisfied.
The last time he suffered three consecutive defeats against the same player was against Nadal in 2013. From the French Open to Montreal to the US Open, he lost three times in a row.
As for Federer and Murray, Federer's three-game losing streak dates back to 2010, and Murray's three-game losing streak dates back to 2008. The memories are already distant.
And now?
Before the game, Djokovic had already done a good job of psychological construction. This meeting was mainly about testing and understanding. Putting aside the short preparation time, he would test some tactical combinations and practice some different strategies. Regardless of winning or losing, It’s about making longer-term plans for the future.
Djokovic is very good at this. When facing young players, he is particularly good at killing them——
In other words, there may be an occasional Waterloo and an upset loss once or twice, but after getting familiar with it, Djokovic will be able to take the initiative.
But!
Ideas are ideas, plans are plans, and all the perfect psychological constructions collapsed, fell apart, and fell to pieces in the actual game.
"Three consecutive losses."
No matter what the opponent is, this is a difficult term to swallow.
So, what happened in the third set?
The anger is burning, but at the same time, the fighting spirit is also burning. The more angry you are, the more focused you are, and the more angry you are, the more high-spirited you are.
Djokovic can feel his blood boiling——
Match point?
Even if it's match point, so what?
To be more precise, when faced with the match point, Djokovic quickly calmed down, his mind became clear, and all negative emotions were transformed into a source of motivation.
The state and concentration are completely condensed, reaching a new level, entering Super Saiyan mode, and you can even feel the flames bursting out from the inside out.
So, how should we play on match point?
call!
With a heavy breath, Djokovic reached the baseline and prepared to serve.
Second District.
Forehand? Backhand? Close?
In this match that lasted two hours and thirty-seven minutes, Djokovic had adopted different service combinations at different critical moments.
So, what about this time?
Classic routine.
There must be a reason why classics are classics. Even vulgar tricks can still work and you can gain an advantage through layout.
Bend your knees, push off the ground, throw the ball.
The whole place was completely silent.
The mustard-yellow tennis ball flew lightly, and the golden sunlight was caught in the fine fluff. It was as if you could see the tiny sunlight turning into snowflakes and falling.
Swing, turn, hit.
The tennis ball crossed the entire court, light and fast, with its long tail just like a comet passing through.
outer corner.
Facing the match point, Djokovic chose the classic routine of suppressing the backhand from the outside corner of the second zone, but the ingenuity can still be seen in the details:
The angle is not completely torn apart, and it does not even enter the small triangle area between the service area and the sideline. This also means that Djokovic does not pursue the ultimate in outside angles.
The landing point is directly on the bottom line of the service area. Half of the ball has already passed the bottom line, but it is still guaranteed to be within the bounds, making full use of the deep space.
Also, this is a distinctly flat serve, fast, heavy, and with backspin.
The entire tactical intention is very obvious.
Djokovic did not expect to pull Gawain out of the sideline and return the outside corner to the outside corner, but he knew that Gawain's backhand could successfully complete the shot; the focus was on the quality and effect of the ball after the serve landed and rebounded, compressing Gawain. In addition to the swing space, he used strong backspin to force Gao Wenla to topspin——
Otherwise, there is a risk of being offline.
If it is a normal hit, the player can bend the knees and lower the center of gravity to deal with the backspin ball. However, in the process of serving and receiving, because the speed is too fast and the prediction is difficult, there is often not enough time to adjust the center of gravity. Increasing friction topspin is the only option.
At the same time, Gawain's two-handed backhand's ability to pull strong topspin is significantly weaker than that of his forehand, which means that the spin effect is definitely slightly inferior.
This also means that Djokovic will have an absolute advantage in connecting with his next attack——
He dug a trap, and Gawain had no choice but to step into it, and even had to complete the return according to Djokovic's design.
Through calculation and gaming, Djokovic took full advantage of his serving.
Speed 190 kilometers per hour.
The speed has not increased to Djokovic's personal highest level, but it is enough, and it can also increase the safety factor of the first-serve goal.
Then……
Gawain was like a marionette, returning the ball exactly according to Djokovic's design.
With a sideways step and a backhand push with both hands, the tennis ball flew back. Gawain could do very little, and he couldn't even add any spin.
Immediately afterwards, Djokovic entered the baseline, quickly ascended with light steps, and reached the midfield in a blink of an eye.
Adjusting the body in small steps continuously, from backhand with both hands to sideways forehand, the body completely flies into the air, carrying the triple power of forward thrust, turn and swing, it hits the opponent with all the strength, and launches a fierce blow.
boom!
(End of chapter)
