Like Berdych, Tsonga has only reached one Grand Slam final in his entire career:
Berdych won Wimbledon in 2010, and Tsonga won the Australian Open in 2008.
This is obviously not normal.
Even if they don't reach the Grand Slam championship, at least judging from their abilities, they should have experienced more than one final. Even Kevin Anderson has reached the final once at Wimbledon and the US Open, a total of two times. , two masters, Berdych and Tsonga, only once?
What restrains Berdych is psychology, and he is often unable to break through his own inner demons at critical moments.
What binds Tsonga is injuries.
Similar to Del Potro, this talented player who already has the physical and mental qualities to write brilliant stories has been hampered by injuries.
Every time when Tsonga reaches his peak form, injuries become a hindrance. Knee injuries, back injuries, shoulder injuries, etc. interrupt the continuation of his form.
Moreover, this is not all, to be more precise, it is not just injuries, but the body——
Tsonga's playing style is somewhat similar to Tim's, relying heavily on the body, and physical support is the basis for their entire game.
Once there is an abnormality in the body, it does not even need to be an injury, it may just be some fatigue, a small cold, etc., the quality of the game will decline. It is conceivable that during the two weeks of a Grand Slam tournament, the body must maintain At its peak, the difficulty is very high, which limits your performance.
One piece of data can explain:
Since entering the professional arena in 2004, Tsonga has only entered the final set 17 times in best-of-five sets.
Record, eleven wins and six losses.
So, if it really enters the final set, is Tsonga incapable of defeating his opponent?
Obviously not.
The key point is whether the body can support Tsonga in a five-set battle. Tsonga often ends the game before the game enters the fifth set——
Regardless of victory or defeat.
Not to mention, at the beginning of this year, Tsonga had no choice but to withdraw from the Australian Open at the last moment due to injuries, and almost missed the entire spring season, and did not return until Miami.
Throughout the clay court season, Tsonga has been slowly looking for the feeling of returning from injury. His performance has been ups and downs, and finally came to Roland Garros with a record of five wins and four losses.
Although Tsonga is not good at clay courts, as a Grand Slam held in his home country, he has always hoped to achieve a breakthrough on this court; and, like Dimitrov, as a player who grew up on clay courts, Even if your playing style doesn't perfectly fit on clay, it doesn't mean you know nothing.
In the past three years, Tsonga's performance at Roland Garros has been pretty good.
In 2012, in the quarterfinals, he wasted four match points and lost to Djokovic.
In 2013, in the semi-finals, he defeated Federer to advance to the semi-finals but lost to Ferrer due to abnormal performance.
In 2014, in the round of 16, he lost to Djokovic again.
It can be seen from the above data that in the past few years, Tsonga is indeed in the golden period of his career, with a perfect combination of ability and experience.
Unfortunately, injuries are still a problem. Because of injuries, problems often occur in the second half of the season, and then they have to go into rest. Therefore, they have not been able to usher in more breakthroughs, and this year is no exception. , interrupted by injuries, once again playing the role of an unknown quantity.
When he arrived at Roland Garros, Tsonga gave up his expectations and went out in a low-key manner to reduce the pressure as much as possible.
However, the fortune is good.
In the first three rounds, I didn't meet any real experts. I advanced to the fourth round smoothly and faced almost no challenges before returning to the top 16.
Of course, a master is a master, and the talent, experience, and ability are there. As long as his body does not hold him back, Tsonga has the ability to defeat any player. When he gets into the state and plays crazy, even on clay, he will be the same. The superman mode in which gods block gods and Buddhas block Buddhas.
As the tournament progressed round by round, Tsonga slowly regained his form, his confidence and touch gradually returned, and then he found his magic.
The expectations of local audiences are naturally rising.
Playing against Gao Wen, in the eyes of professionals, this is a litmus test——
This is true for both players.
Let's test and see whether the current status and abilities of the two players can withstand the test, whether they can go further and create more waves in subsequent games.
The competition lived up to expectations.
In the first set, Tsonga was firing on all cylinders, launching an unreasonable and violent attack that was both powerful and well-placed. It really did not give Gawain much room to counterattack.
In the second set, Tsonga's offensive status declined slightly. Gao Wen seized the opportunity to turn the situation around, firing full defense and attack to forcefully suppress his opponent.
The first two sets were evenly matched.
In the third set, Tsonga and Gauvin both went back and forth, and the competition became fierce. Gauvin, who gradually grasped the context of the game, had a slight advantage, but Tsonga's violent attack still managed to find a way out in the storm. You We were in a stalemate all the way, and finally relied on a tiebreaker to win.
Next, Gao Wen played a perfect tie-break, speeding up both offensive and defensive ends. From layout to execution, from planning to adaptability, everything was impeccable. Although Tsonga also performed well, Gao Wen took the lead. Chen, directly widened the gap, scored seven points in a row, and shaved Tsonga's head.
"7:0".
Gawain once again exceeded the score.
Everything seems familiar.
It can't help but remind people of Gao Wen's second round match against Thiem. He also lost one set and then won two in a row. He also won the tie-break in the third set.
All the connections and directions are all very familiar.
Could it be that Gao Wen will destroy Tsonga in one go and win the fourth set strongly?
Tsonga, however, said no.
Tsonga refused to surrender. Amid the cheers and cheers from the home audience, he firmly grasped the advantage of serving first in this set and continued to apply pressure——
When Tsonga was leading at "5:4" and "6:5" respectively, he had three non-consecutive set points in Gawain's serve game where he had to save.
However, in a desperate situation, Gao Wen once again showed his big heart, saving set points continuously with an unparalleled performance and dragging the game into a tiebreaker.
For the second consecutive set, the game will be decided in a tie-break. This time, Tsonga is highly focused and the entire game is more delicate and bolder.
After the "3:3" draw and exchange of venues, Tsonga suddenly exerted his strength——
First, he used a violent forehand to break one of Gao Wen's service points in a straight line, and then performed strongly to keep two of his own service points, winning three points in a row.
"6:3", Tsonga once again got the count; and, this time it was slightly different, with three consecutive counts, the opportunity was firmly in Tsonga's hands.
but!
Never underestimate Gawain. As long as this set, game, and point are not over, Gawain's high fighting spirit will never be extinguished.
Under heavy pressure, Gao Wen saved two consecutive service points and saved two set points again before putting the pressure back on Tsonga.
So, the scene just now happened——
On the fifth count, Tsonga performed so strongly, but was still shocked into a cold sweat by Gao Wen's high-quality defense. And after finally fulfilling the count, Tsonga released his emotions without reservation, just like Like Mount Tai.
A domineering roar hovered over the Philippe-Chatier Stadium, exploding into billowing waves of air.
(End of chapter)
