Match point

Chapter 1235
Standing on a hard court, Nadal will adjust the way of receiving and receiving the serve according to his state and the opponent's serve, especially after Moya took over in 2017.

But on clay, Nadal's iconic way of returning the ball has never changed, and has even become a way of returning the ball that everyone on the clay court imitated:
Standing back, with strong topspin.

Nadal's return serve is always witnessed by being conservative and steady. Through this safe method, no matter what serve can be returned to the court smoothly, even if it is a cannon serve like Isner or Karlovic, it is no exception. Then enter Nadal's familiar bottom-line round mode.

However, this way of hitting the ball is not effective for everyone, because a strong topspin means giving the opponent room to attack; moreover, not everyone can hit a Nadal-style strong topspin, and the quality of the ball returned Too bad, it was simply calling the opponent to attack directly.

Now, Gao Wen is trying to return the ball in this way.

Mike tried to use a strong flat serve to limit Gao Wen, but Gao Wen used strong topspin to slow down the rhythm of the round, and the choice of route was also very special.

one volume.

Skim.

Gao Wen used his strong topspin to cushion the impact of the serve, and then with a flick of his forearm, the return ball flew out along a small diagonal line.

backslash!
To put it simply, Mike and Bob created difficulties for Gawain to tear the angle, but Gawain used strong topspin to resolve the problem and tear the angle.

One time, one time, even though the Bryan brothers quickly completed tactical adjustments, Gao Wen still found a way to respond on the spot and return the ball according to the established tactics.

On the surface, it seemed that Dimitrov was "pressed" in place, unable to move; in fact, this was exactly the tactic of Gawain and Dimitrov. Dimitrov had to maintain a squatting position. Only in this way, Gao Wen was able to tear the angle of the ball back.

Between calculations and countermeasures, Gao Wen once again showed his wisdom——

The tennis ball actually landed near the bottom line of the teeing area on Mike's side, that is, the shallow area.

First, Bob is moving in the opposite direction, making it impossible to hit the ball.

Secondly, Mike did not expect such a way of returning the ball at all. The horizontal movement was switched to the vertical movement, and the whole body was directly pulled out of the doubles zone.

The rhythm also becomes strange.

Of course, Mike still hit the ball smoothly without any difficulty, but Mike soon realized that Gao Wen's shot was also a layout——

Unfortunately, it's too late.

When Gao Wen hit the ball, after landing, he made full use of the characteristics of the clay to release all the strong rotation, and when Mike was about to touch the ball, the tennis ball was positioned obliquely above his shoulders, almost parallel to the top of his head.

Moreover, this is a backhand.

Mike backhanded with both hands.

At this time, holding the racket with both hands and trying to hit the ball near the top of the head, the whole movement was pinned, which was very awkward and uncomfortable.

Originally, Mike was a typical North American hard-court player with mediocre backhand ability. Most of the time he relied on cutting and blocking, and his ability to actively exert force was mediocre; Hit the high point to finish the shot.

Not even chipping.

This also means that there is no way to control the strong topspin of Gao Wen's shot. If you don't pay attention, Mike's shot may directly evolve into a skyrocket.

but!

Is this the only strength of Brother Bryan?

of course not.

Mike has experienced many battles, faced with such a predicament, he barely made a backhand shot. He knew that his backhand shot could not be suppressed at all, so he simply pushed the boat along——

lob.

Since the backhand can no longer exert force, and even the parabola of the shot can't be controlled, it is better to follow Gao Wen's shot and further slow down the rhythm of the round, which is also in line with the characteristics of the clay court.

Then, the tennis ball flew high, drawing a parabola.

Oops!

Mike secretly exclaimed.

Such a way of responding is a good idea, showing Mike’s adaptability on the spot, but the execution effect is not satisfactory. The main reason is that Mike’s hitting technique is simple and rough, and there is no strong topspin that can “eat” Gao Wen, so that the parabola of the high ball There is a slight deviation in control.

See high but not far.

Ideally, the lob should go over Dimitrov's head and enter the second half, dragging Gawain down the baseline for a see-saw round. Commanding heights, reverse the situation.

In reality, Dimitrov maintained a squatting posture, coupled with Gao Wen's unexpected ball, between the flashes, Mike's judgment of the court space and the handling of the ball were deviated, and the quality of the high ball was also reduced. Not so good.

Then came the crisis.

When Mike and Bob saw the parabola of the return ball, they both realized that the situation was not good. Who would have thought that Gao Wen deliberately slowed down the speed and tore the angle to return the ball to produce such an effect. Mike's tactical execution was obviously not in place. Immediately afterwards, Dimitrov stood up.

Originally, Dimitrov was held in place and unable to stand up, but now he took advantage of a time difference and appeared on the return line just right.

kick the ground!

Take off!

Pulling onions in dry land!

Dimitrov's knees seemed to be stuffed with springs. With the strength of standing upright, he jumped high on the spot and grabbed a rising point of the incoming ball.

Ah!
Top down, block smashes.

boom!
The audience roared.

Dimitrov was like a swordsman with a long sword out of its sheath, white clothes better than snow, hair fluttering, and a high-pressure ball came out like a bomb.

boom!
Even on clay, you can still feel the solid combined force hitting the ball.

A tennis ball, blasting a ball of petals on the ground.

but!

Bob shows up.

When he saw Gao Wen return the ball, Bob had already realized the crisis of the situation. He switched his movements in small steps and returned to the center of the court. He predicted in advance and accurately caught Dimitrov's small diagonal high pressure. The tactical intention, a big stride crosses into the hitting line.

stop.

One.

In the last ball, Bob bravely faced Gao Wen's shot. He was not afraid of facing high-pressure volleys or hand-to-hand combat at all. This is the core of the men's doubles competition. As a result, Gao Wen used softness to overcome strength, and used a small ball to change the rhythm of the confrontation lightly and skillfully. , an easy score.

With this ball, Dimitrov seized the opportunity to complete a violent high pressure. Bob once again faced forward without fear. Before the brain has time to turn, the body muscles have already made movements.

incredible!

Amazing!

Everything, everything happened too fast, everyone thought that Dimitrov's high-pressure ball would directly form the winning point, but they didn't expect Bob to complete the interception. Seeing Bob block Dimitrov's sure-fire high.

It all depends on the on-the-spot reaction.

The charm of the doubles match and the tension of the peak duel burst out with unparalleled sparks at this moment, and they couldn't help holding their breath.

Immediately afterwards, the tennis ball hit the racket head-on.

Like Mars hitting the Earth.

(End of this chapter)