Match point

Chapter 1411

Kick off the ground and step up.

Turn around and shoot.

Nadal's backhand with both hands was solid and stable, the long sword was out of the sheath, and the epee struck out, hitting a straight straight line and getting into the dead corner on the opposite side of the court.

Although Gao Wen's speed has been increased to the extreme, he arrived in time, but the hitting point was still late, and he caught a shot with his forehand. Unfortunately, he could not attach enough spin, and the parabola of the tennis ball completely deviated from the track, heading far away. Flying over to the audience stands behind Nadal.

"what!"

Nadal clenched his fists and screamed, his fighting spirit was burning, he was sweating profusely, his veins were bulging, like a god of war, his eyes were shining with brilliance.

"Ahhh!"

Repressed and repressed, burning and burning, Nadal finally fully released without reservation, and the ferocious and magnificent momentum permeated the audience.

"40: AD".

Gao Wen's serve, the break point, appeared again, this is already the fourth break point in this round.

From this small detail, it can be seen that the game was very, very difficult. Although Nadal got the chance, Gao Wen's performance was not inferior. The suffering and saw-saw of consecutive missed break points made the game stalemate bit by bit. Obviously, Nadal also felt great pressure.

The 2015 French Open men's singles first quarter-final match has entered the end of the second set, but the suspense of the outcome is still swinging left and right on the wire rope.

In fact, it’s not just this game——

From the first point of the match, Nadal could deeply feel Gawain's high spirited fighting spirit, and the vigor and enthusiasm of young people launched a full-scale attack.

However, Nadal on clay is different, and Nadal on Roland-Garros is different. The nine-time champion has shown his strong background since the beginning of the game, using practical actions to exert comprehensive pressure. Let Gao Wen clearly realize that this is the Philippe Chartier Stadium.

In the distant future, Zverev Jr. once quipped half-jokingly,

"Every year I come to Roland Garros, Rafa is like a superhero transformed, serving 30% faster, hitting the ball 50% harder, moving 100% faster, not alone at all."

At that time, everyone thought it was a joke, but now Gao Wen finally understands that it is different, it is indeed different, at least compared with Madrid, the whole ball quality, speed, connection and confidence, etc. Everyone can feel the overall improvement of Nadal's hitting.

first plate.

After a short period of adaptation, Nadal suddenly accelerated his attack in Gao Wen's second serve, and the quality of the forehand super topspin shot was vividly displayed. After saving the third one, he suffered a break and fell into a passive situation.

In men's tennis, a break of serve can often determine the outcome of a set, especially on hard courts and grass courts. But even on clay courts, once a serve is broken and you are passive, you need to go through physical strength to reverse the situation. The double test of strength and energy is not easy.

In the end, Nadal relied on a break advantage to win the game and go to the next set first.

"6:4".

From the score, you can deeply feel the stalemate of the game, but the actual game is closer and tighter, dancing on the wire rope throughout the whole process.

In the first set, Nadal got nine break points in total and only cashed in once; Gao Wen got four break points before and after, but none of them could be cashed in.

There are always opportunities, it depends on who plays better on the spot at the critical moment. After a full 53 minutes of competition, Nadal won.

The game completely met expectations, and was even more exciting and exciting than expected——

On the one hand, Gao Wen is indeed learning and improving. His understanding of clay, the layout of tactics, the choice of shots, the judgment of returns, etc., etc., these details permeate all aspects of the game, and it is indeed clear that Gao Wen The perfect fit has not yet been reached between Wen and Red Clay.

Especially standing in front of Nadal, the "King of Clay" has an alien understanding of the court, tennis, and the game.

No wonder Soderling alone has been able to beat Nadal at Roland Garros for a whole decade.

So, how did Soderling do it?
Full court attack.

In fact, Soderling is not a typical clay court master. This violent offensive player whose offensive firepower ranks among the top ten in history is a pure offensive player. In that game, from the first point to the last point, he was full of firepower Launch a full-scale attack, high-intensity crit strike for three hours.

In a five-set three-win Grand Slam match, it is almost a miracle that cannot be replicated.

To put it simply, it's crazy, crazy.

Even Soderling himself was unable to replicate this performance again. The following year he met Nadal again at Roland Garros and lost in straight sets.

Moreover, 2009 was the lowest year of Nadal's career. Problems with his own game system were also an important reason——

Similarly, 2015 was the second fatal trough in Nadal's career. To some extent, it was even worse than the state in 2009.

It is precisely because of this that the "gap" between Nadal and Gao Wen has been narrowed sharply, which is also the key factor for this game to be so stalemate and so close.

On the other hand, Nadal's own state fluctuates.

This year, this is the only time in ten years that Nadal failed to win any championship trophy in the European clay court season before entering Roland Garros. It can be seen that Nadal is in a bad state.

Of course, when he came to Roland Garros, Nadal was different after all. The first four games were bloodless, and it was not until the fourth round when he faced Sock that he lost the first set of this year's French Open. The set has a domineering and powerful dominance at the dominating level, no one can underestimate it.

Against Gawain, there is no doubt that this is Nadal's toughest challenge this year.

If you can defeat Gao Wen, the victory will be victory, but more importantly, Nadal can regain his form and confidence. In the final stage, the belief and arrogance of the king of clay will allow him to return to the ranks of the favorites. Therefore, Gao Wen is the most critical touchstone.

Nadal also clearly knows the importance of this game, and from the opening stage, he showed [-]% concentration.

However, wrist injuries, knee injuries, shoulder injuries, etc., frequent injuries in the past two years, and the remaining problems have torn Nadal's game state to pieces. After the fluency and comprehensiveness of the entire game were severely damaged, the score The stalemate and closeness are also predictable results.

In fact, like Federer, he has been complained about as the "leakage point king" in the past two years, and has repeatedly failed to effectively fulfill the break point. The side reaction is that the ability to improve the state and performance at critical moments is declining due to objective factors such as age, health, and injuries. The control of the game is gradually lost.

Nine break points, only cashed once, this is definitely not what Nadal should have done at Roland Garros.

But no matter what, the king of clay is still the king of clay. Nadal still clings to the game, relying on his experience and heritage to win the first set.

(End of this chapter)