21 Table Tennis League ①

◎【Two in One】Two young girls cross-fighting and catching the ball, like a duck in water.◎

The traditional Chinese penhold grip is held with two fingers in front, with the middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger resting against the back of the racket, and the index finger and middle finger providing the thrust.

In order to make it easier to grip the ball, the handle of a pen-hold racket is shorter than that of a horizontal racket.

This way of capturing photos is similar to holding chopsticks, so many Chinese people know how to hold a candy bar right from the start.

The horizontal racket, which originated in Europe, has a grip similar to that of a kitchen knife. In the 1960s and 1970s, the older generation called this grip "holding a broadsword."

Everyone knows.

The advantage of a straight racket is that the forehand is flexible and good at changing the landing point.

However, because the middle and ring fingers press against the backhand, more than half of the backhand area is covered by the fingers. As the hitting area decreases, the backhand area is almost nonexistent. In the early days, many penholder players preferred to use their forehand as a backhand, effectively using one side for dual purposes.

He Qianlu, a player who originally used a penhold racket and backhand, once said to Zhu Qi, "Anyone who can play with a penhold racket can also play with a backhand racket, but not everyone who can play with a backhand racket can play with a penhold racket. Do you know why?"

Zhu Qi said, "Because Chinese people have better brains than foreigners, because they are the product of a happy education, because they want to do everything the simplest way. What else could it be?"

"..." He Qianlu. "That's partly the reason, but also partly because playing with a penholder requires more flexible fingers than playing with a swing."

In fact, it was about ten years later.

There are still many people playing with straight blades.

But basically only amateur players can play it.

There may be one or two in the national team, but they can only serve as sparring partners to help the main players train, and they are not traditional Chinese straight blades. All straight blades are developing towards "straight blade horizontal hitting".

Because the ball is larger, it's difficult to achieve the same spin with a penholder. Furthermore, the trade-off for hitting with a penholder is that it puts more strain on the wrist to add spin to the ball, which can increase the risk of injuries.

Pen-straight blade players need to practice twice as much to barely achieve the rotation effect of a horizontal blade.

No one wants to endure such hardship again, and everyone wants to see results faster.

Song Linzhou scratched his head: "Is it too late for me to practice now?"

He's already eighteen years old, and he's already used to the tactical system and grip, and...

"As long as I can get some spin going, there's hope for the straight-blade player. And—" Zhu Qi finished, stood up, threw away his empty water bottle, and headed toward the group outside for their morning jog. "The best time to plant a tree was ten years ago. The second best time is now."

Song Linzhou sat there, lost in thought.

/

Zhu Qi always thought that the behavior of young team members admiring senior team members was just an individual case.

However, when I was running laps during morning exercise, I saw Qin Xiaoba following Song Linzhou and calling "Brother Ling", and then I realized that the level differentiation in the men's table tennis team was even more serious.

Zhu Qi has been an object of admiration since childhood, but he said he has never experienced this stage.

In response to Zhu Qi's confusion, Ah Shui ran after her, panting as he said, "That's normal. When I was in the second team, if I wanted to improve, I had to find a partner to practice with. Whoever played well was in demand, and people get tired too. They can't play 24 hours a day... huh, huh, huh... So if you want to improve, having a partner is super important. By the way, do you have a partner in the provincial team?"

"My partners are He Qianlu and my brother." Zhu Qi adjusted his breathing and ran at a steady speed.

"Ah... I'm so envious. You have a former national team and world champion as your partner. Someone like you who already won the 'Golden Throne' before joining the team is, in college terms, 'guaranteed to graduate school.' No, you were immediately assigned to the first team and live on the seventh floor. You're doing a 'bachelor's and master's degree simultaneously. Oh, how can a shining star like you understand the pain of mere mortals like me? ... Huh, huh, huh..."

The turnover of athletes is very rapid.

Every six months, a new batch of young players will come in and compete with the old players for the few spots on the first team.

After staying in the second national team for a long time and failing to make it into the first team, they would choose to go back to school.

Of course, this is also a good choice. After all, those who can stand on the World Games are one in a million. It is also a good idea to go back to college and find a job related to the sports industry after graduation.

Zhu Qi has only been in the national team for a month, but looking around, he can see that there are fewer familiar faces in the second team at the back of the team.

"When I was on the second team, in addition to regular practice, to improve my skills, I would sneak over to the first team's practice field to watch, buy snacks for the first team members, fetch water, run errands, bring breakfast, and so on. We had to show our presence in front of the senior team members, hoping they would give us some pointers in their free time... Whew, Whew, Whew... If I could practice a few reps with them, that would be amazing. I'd really want to kowtow to them right there and then."

Zhu Qi felt that Ah Shui was exaggerating a bit.

Ah Shui asked back: "Didn't you try to curry favor with the old team members to practice with you when you first started training?"

"I'm the one being flattered." Zhu Qi.

"..." Ah Shui. "I'm just asking you a question."

Think about it carefully.

Zhu Qi's road to promotion did suffer a setback when he was promoted from the provincial team to the national second team.

When I was coaching players in the club, those guys were paid high salaries to play games everywhere and didn’t care whether they won or not. The training was relatively loose and the staffing was complete, so there was no problem of not having a partner.

After being reborn, my uncle-in-law and Qin Xiaoba also played table tennis.

Ball partner, always available.

/

Ever since the women's team's "betting scandal".

This phenomenon has been eliminated a lot.

Because the boss had already punished Jin Lili, head coach Lao Ren did not make further criticisms, but instead strictly demanded that similar situations should not occur again.

It also requires that senior team members volunteer to help junior team members, and class differentiation is not allowed. Athletes who have joined our party are prohibited from engaging in personality cult, and everyone must pay attention to collective interests.

If there is a similar situation of the big bullying the small again, everyone from the senior players to their head coaches, and then to the head coaches of the men's or women's teams will be punished.

Even so, many young team members will subconsciously bow down in front of the older team members.

After all, many of the top players have won world-class competitions. They are not only masters and seniors, but also idols in our hearts.

Let’s leave aside the national team.

Even in an ordinary school, poor students will have this mentality when they meet top students.

So Ms. Ren came up with a new idea, which is "old members leading new members in the team."

The first team's senior players, whether they are sparring partners, starting players, or absolute starting players, can go to the second team to select young players they think have good development prospects and talents, and provide them with support and guidance after training.

This is similar to the situation in school where teachers arrange top students and poor students to sit together.

If this young player can enter the first team in the round-robin match between the first and second teams.

Team members will receive a personal medal of honor, which will be placed in their personal file bag, as well as a 50-yuan allowance.

Song Linzhou wants to take Qin Xiaoba with him.

Qin Xiaoba hadn't been here for a month when he started calling me "Brother Antelope, Brother Tiger, Brother Bear" all kinds of things with honey in his mouth.

Almost everyone in the men's table tennis team knows him.

So, he got another nickname - "non-staff member of the men's table tennis team."

Ah Shui complained: "This men's table tennis team is like a zoo, with antelopes, fat tigers, and big bears. Your brother's Qin Xiaoba shouldn't be the number eight, it's the "ba" in "flattery."

Zhu Qi smiled helplessly.

A Shui is also a talkative type and is very popular among the women's table tennis team, but for some reason he always likes to tease Qin Xiaoba.

Even Maomao noticed it and turned to ask A Shui, "Do you have a grudge against Baobao's brother? Why do you always like to pick on him? He's only been here a week, and every time you see him, you look so bitter and resentful."

Ah Shui hummed for a long time without saying anything.

Zhu Qi also became curious. After her morning run, she asked her brother, "Fang Miao, do you know this person?"

"Yes, I know her. Isn't she the girl who follows you every day? What's the matter?" Qin Xiaoba answered while wiping his sweat.

"I mean, have you known each other before?"

"I'm from Jianghuai and she's from Shanghai. How could we possibly know each other?"

"Haven't you seen it before when you were playing for the U12s (the national youth group for those 12 years and under)?"

"Hey, sister, come here. I'm a man, she's a woman, and we have different tracks."

Zhu Qi felt something was amiss. After thinking about it carefully, he had some recollection: "Oh, right, I remember when you won the U12 men's singles championship, you seemed to have a fight with someone in the locker room, and they even beat you to tears..."

"Sister! We agreed not to talk about this!" Qin Xiaoba quickly stood up, afraid that others would hear. "That happened two years ago. Why are you bringing it up? It's so embarrassing! And the guy who fought with me was a little boy."

He had been beaten and cried by his sister since he was a child, and he was always the one who made others cry.

That was the most humiliating experience in Qin Xiaoba's short 14 years of life.

The other guy wasn't tall, and his fighting ability wasn't strong, but he was very ruthless. He started pinching and biting him right away... and even kicked him.

However.

It was confirmed the next day that "that kid" was the member of the first female team who had always followed my sister. His surname was Fang, his name was Miao, his courtesy name was A Shui, and his nickname was the trumpet of the women's table tennis team.

The evidence was that Qin Xiaoba recognized the small water cup that had been following A Shui from Shanghai Province, and on it was a cartoon sticker of Sun Wukong beating the White Bone Demon with a stick that he still remembered vividly.

"Aren't you a man?!" Qin Xiaoba was dumbfounded, looking Ah Shui up and down. "You went into the men's locker room with me. Do the national team accept transsexuals?"

"You are blind! I am a woman from head to toe!" Ah Shui put his hands on his hips and looked at him coldly. His true nature as a trumpet was exposed. His shouting almost scared Fat Tiger, who was eating next to him, to fall off his chair.

The U12 competition scene two years ago.

After her match, Ah Shui found her jersey was dirty and wanted to change into a new one. However, all the women's locker rooms along the way were packed. A kind security guard told her that the men's game across the street had finished long ago and everyone had left, so she could change there.

As soon as Ah Shui finished changing, a little boy came in.

She felt a little embarrassed, said "sorry" and ran out the door.

Qin Shang, who was only 12 years old, started taking off his clothes and pants as soon as he came in.

After so many years, Qin Shang still didn't feel that he was to blame for this incident.

He grew very fast since he was a child, and with the "lion step" he practiced with He Qianlu and his elder sister, the muscles in his thighs were very developed. At the age of 12, he was wearing clothes that were stuck in his crotch.

Zhu Qi gave him a tip, which was to wear larger-sized pants and tie them around his waist with shoelaces.

It works well, but when I went back, the air leaked through my trouser legs and made my butt feel very cold.

So he likes to wear a looser pair of clothes during competitions and change into a normal pair when he returns. He waited for the women in the women's gym across the street to finish their matches and then left with them, dragging his feet until now before changing his clothes.

That year, Ah Shui cut his hair into a crew cut to make it easier to take care of and wash his hair. In addition, his body had not yet started to develop, so he looked like a little boy.

Before Ah Shui had taken two steps, Qin Shang pulled him back and stuffed something into his hand.

"Hey, help me take it down, one minute, I'm going to go pee next door."

Looking at the thing in her hand, even the youngest girl would know what it was. Ah Shui blushed, cursed "so disgusting", threw it on the ground and was about to leave.

Qin Shang followed out with his underwear in his hand, grabbed Ah Shui's hand and brought it back, pointing at the pants on the ground and saying, "Hey! Pick them up for me!"

He thought this was a little boy who dared to throw his things. He was really sick.

She thought the man was a pervert for letting a girl take his underwear.

The conflict of the whole story stems from the fights over “you catch it for me”, “I threw it for you”, “pick it up for me”, and “I pick up a dog ball for you”.

The two men clashed at the restroom door, and were eventually separated by a security guard who came running over at the noise. When Zhu Qi, his aunt, and his uncle went over, they only saw Qin Xiaoba crying.

That year, Xiao Ba still didn't know that the person he was fighting with was a girl.

/

Since that day in the cafeteria.

Ah Shui thinks Zhu Qi is good in every way except that his younger brother is unbearable to look at.

Qin Xiaoba also felt that his sister was good in every way except that she was always following that unpleasant person behind her back, which was annoying.

Her best friend is no longer a complete best friend, as a part of her heart has been given to her younger brother.

His sister is no longer the one who loves him the most, and she has given part of her heart to her best friend.

Water and fire are incompatible.

Zhu Qi and Maomao expressed their confusion and tried to persuade him: "This happened two years ago. If there's any misunderstanding, can't we just clarify it? Is it that serious?"

"As for that!" they said in unison.

“…” Zhu Qi, Maomao.

Fortunately, the Table Tennis League is finally about to begin.

All the players who registered this time will be moved to the secondary hall for specific project training, and Qin Xiaoba also began to work hard to participate in various small competitions to accumulate team points in order to enter the national first team.

The day when the Ping Tiao League training camp began.

He Qianlu came with a doctor from the provincial team, Dr. Wang, and a physical trainer, Mr. Li.

The two teachers were fully responsible for Zhu Qi's personal physical and mental recovery, aiming to prolong her athletic career as long as possible. She was provided with food and lodging by the national team, and her salary was provided by the provincial team.

"Fuck, this is too good to be true!" Ah Shui was very envious. "I wonder when my provincial team will be able to pair me up. I will die for Shanghai Province!"

The provincial team provided a personal doctor and a physical trainer, which is a special treatment only available to the singles champion of the World Games.

At the very least, I have to be a National Games champion.

I don’t know how much He Qianlu had to negotiate for Zhu Qi before Jianghuai Province approved it.

"Bao Bao! Bao Bao! My lovely Bao Bao!" Ah Shui grabbed Zhu Qi's hand, looking pitiful. "I want to take a photo with He Qianlu, is that okay? Is that okay?"

She had a point-and-shoot film camera around her neck and was gesturing at Zhu Qi.

This kind of camera still requires film, and you have to go to a photo studio to develop the photos. Moreover, the pixels are very low, so the developed photos are not very clear.

But at that time, it was a very novel gadget, almost as expensive as a pager.

The money-making power of the daughter of Shanghai is truly incredible.

They are actually some new things nowadays.

He Qianlu has since been rehired by the Jianghuai Provincial Team.

People in the domestic sports circle all tacitly agree that this is some kind of "announcement to the world" by the General Administration of Sports, and that He Qianlu may have been wrongly accused.

But because it was five years later and I was abroad when the incident happened.

A lot of evidence is in the hands of others. The Chinese team cannot go out and compete with the old Jews for the time being, so they can only lift the blockade domestically first.

Everyone assumed that He Qianlu was innocent, and no one bothered to bring up the past incident again.

Except for one other person...

Looking at He Qianlu, who was smiling playfully and taking photos with his female players, Foye walked over with a sullen face and yelled at Ah Shui, "Take photos, take photos, what's there to take photos of? Hurry up and get training! If you don't leave, I'll confiscate your camera!"

After being scolded, A Shui quickly ran away with his camera.

He Qianlu looked at Master Fo and said with a smile, "Hey, Coach Jiang, long time no see. Last time I heard you came to the Jianghuai Provincial Team? Why didn't you say hello to me? You're so distant."

The master looked at the coaching uniform of the Jianghuai Provincial Team on him, and he felt displeased. He gritted his teeth and said, "He Qianlu, I have to remind you that this is the national team. Don't bring your cynical and irreverent habits into this team, or I will..."

"How come it's been so long, and you're still so powerful?" He Qianlu disagreed.

The troublemaker from back then is still the troublemaker from back then.

But he was not as impulsive as before. When he thought that his beloved disciple was still in other people's hands, He Qianlu restrained his expression and said with a playful smile: "Don't worry, head coach of the women's team, I will take good care of Zhu Qi of our provincial team." You wouldn't bother asking me to teach other people.

When Zhu Qi came to find He Qianlu, he saw that the Buddha's face was dark. Although he didn't say anything, it was clear from his expression that he was cursing very dirty.

After that, Zhu Qi never saw Master Fo in the deputy hall again.

After all, he is the head coach of the women's team and he can't stay in one place and engage in verbal battles with his former teammates.

Xu Dong almost never came. Whenever she came, it was when He Qianlu was not around. She would come over to ask about Zhu Qi's training and check on the other girls in her group to see if there was anything she could help with.

He Qianlu and Xu Dong seemed to have agreed not to see each other.

Zhu Qi didn't ask any more questions.

Things like love.

Even the world champion can't escape.

/

Seven days later.

The table tennis league is finally about to begin.

The first session was held at the Chaoyang BRICS Sports Center.

The schedule is divided into [Women's Singles, Women's Doubles, Women's Team, Men's Singles, Men's Doubles, Men's Team, Mixed Team]

Because individual points are not calculated, it is an internal competition in China and will not be included in the individual honor file like the National Games.

Some people participate simply for the sheer joy of playing table tennis. Others seek to show off their presence and presence in front of national team leaders. Some use the Ping Tiao League as a training ground, using the competition as a training ground. Coaches share the same sentiment: regardless of whether they have a team to lead, they come to watch the matches and select promising players.

Anyway, in a nutshell.

It’s just a huge hodgepodge of various events!

Smoke of war rose everywhere.

Warlords fight for supremacy.

Youthful faces, wearing the sportswear of their provincial teams, entered the venue one after another in the square formation.

Table Tennis League.

Best of five games, each game is 11 points.

The final will determine the champion and runner-up, and the losers of the semi-finals will compete for third place.

This was the prototype of an early commercial race.

But it is mainly controlled by the General Administration of Sports, and competition comes first.

The General Administration of Sport of China and several privately-owned enterprises participated in the planning and construction, renting a stadium the size of a football field in eastern Chaodong for a month-long renovation and layout. The event was then promoted nationwide, with prime-time promotional events. It's said that 80% of tickets were sold on the second day of pre-sale, and tickets were completely sold out on the third day.

As China's national ball, from old to young, from Chaojing Park to ordinary streets.

There are table tennis tables everywhere and countless enthusiasts.

When it was at its most popular, newly built parks would set up a separate area with ping-pong tables to attract tourists.

The audience is large.

There are many spectators.

The tickets naturally sold well.

And I don’t know who said that the young players who are being promoted in table tennis this year are all very good-looking.

It is human nature to be obsessed with looks.

Even more people come to watch the game.

"There have been more and more table tennis enthusiasts in the past two years," He Qianlu lamented. "Back in the day, when I was playing, aside from the World Games, which attracted a lot of attention, smaller tournaments had to be played at university venues. Tickets were incredibly cheap, only one yuan a pop, and they sold out quickly, so only the players' relatives would attend. Worried about the crowds, Mr. Ren even went to the school leadership to discuss whether he could bring in some students to watch, earning them extra credits. Even then, the venues couldn't be filled."

He is someone who has witnessed the rise of table tennis in China, while Zhu Qi is someone who has witnessed the decline of table tennis in China.

One cause arises, one cause ends.

Zhu Qi sighed a little.

A Shui found an empty women's locker room and took Zhu Qi to change clothes in the room.

After Zhu Qi put on the Jianghuai Provincial Team's uniform, he looked at himself in the mirror wearing the crimson T-shirt with wavy pattern, and felt very satisfied.

Athletes' uniforms are different from ordinary sportswear. They are strictly tailored according to the athlete's height, body length, hip width and shoulder width. They should be comfortable and loose to wear.

Zhu Qi likes to hit the ball and his right arm swings with a large range, so the shoulder position is a little bigger.

This red color seems to nourish one's spirit.

He looks very energetic.

Her hair had grown a little longer and was tied in a ponytail. After a month of high-protein diet with the national team, her face looked a little rounder.

My mother was one of the most beautiful women in the village when she was alive.

Her dying biological father was an ordinary man when he was young, but he managed to win over the young and beautiful village girl just by saying a few sweet words.

hei tui!

Why should a beautiful woman be paired with an ugly man!

Zhu Qi looked at herself and felt happy that she had beauty genes flowing in her body, but she felt sad when she thought that some of them came from that old beast.

Ah Shui didn't know why Zhu Qi was smiling and sighing at times, so she pulled Zhu Qi and said that their signature was not bad.

I was not drawn into the same half of the group as Maomao and Chang Hongxia.

But Zhu Qi felt it was a pity and wanted to eliminate the strongest one in the first round so that it would be easier to play later.

Ah Shui pointed at himself bitterly and said, "Can you please be considerate of me? I'm still a rookie!"

"Well... okay." Zhu Qi.

/

Originally, Ah Shui wanted to wear red in the first game and then change to other colors later.

As a result, when playing in the [Women's Doubles - 32 to 16], the two of them defeated their opponents with a big score of [3:0].

A Shui was very happy with the game and said red was their lucky color, so the two of them wore red uniforms and made it all the way from the top 32 to the top 8.

The off-field coaching area is staffed by He Qianlu and coaches from Shanghai Province.

Normally, except for team competitions, there can only be one off-court coach for singles and doubles.

However, since the Ping Tiao League focuses on happy table tennis, according to a joint meeting of coaches from various provinces, it was agreed that cross-provincial doubles teams can each be assigned a coach from their own team.

After all, He Qianlu didn't know the other team's players well, so he couldn't give any advice.

While formulating tactical plans for Zhu Qi and A Shui, the two men handed them water and towels.

The coaches spoke very fast, while the players spoke slowly.

The coaches danced and the players wiped their sweat.

The four of them were busy and having fun, and A Shui was so engrossed in the game that he forgot himself.

Being able to sweat it out next to the pool table with your best friends!

It’s great to have fun playing and learn skills at the same time!

Zhu Qi added: "The most important thing is that the bonus is large."

But Zhu Qi also envied Ah Shui's mentality. She was a carefree Shanghainese girl, not worried about money but also very motivated. She had her own goals but was not paranoid. She seriously achieved the purpose of the Ping Tiao League: happy table tennis.

Compared with Zhu Qi, who becomes bitter and resentful whenever he plays a game, the two of them have a different mentality.

He Qianlu sat in the coaching seat, watching his daughter make a small mistake and lose points, but still wink at the girl next to her and smile at her - he felt very relieved.

This is what a child should be like.

Youth.

Just sweat it out.