34 Participants List

◎【1st update】The hanging heart finally died.◎

After the Dragon Boat Festival, it means that there are less than two months left until the World Games in August.

But it's already the end of May and the roster for the competition has not yet been finalized.

The competition list has not been released yet, and I always feel like there is something on my mind.

This resulted in Zhu Qi accidentally bumping into Jin Lili who was also leaving the house when he was about to go out.

Jin Lili glanced at her, and without saying hello, the former went straight back to the house.

Zhu Qi felt that this girl was like a child.

In the past two years, they have seen each other frequently in the team, but they have never spoken more than ten sentences to each other.

Zhu Qi would never try to please someone who didn't want to help her. When Jin Lili was being sarcastic, she would just talk back.

Zhu Qi viewed Jin Lili with the mindset of a fifty-year-old adult woman, and always felt that she had a kind of...clear simplicity in many of her actions.

Maomao, who had just returned to the dormitory to get something, saw this and walked over, patted Zhu Qi on the shoulder, saying, "Ignore her. She lost in the quarterfinals of the mixed doubles competition. She's been in a bad mood since she came back. I heard she had a fight with Ding Shushu a few days ago. Do you want to go to the cafeteria? Let's go together. I haven't had lunch yet. Ah Shui said they've saved a table for us."

Zhu Qi followed Maomao, and as they waited for the elevator, she asked, "She lost the mixed doubles match? To whom?"

"Song Linzhou." Maomao stood in the elevator, turned around and looked at Zhu Qi, and smiled. "Didn't he tell you?"

Zhu Qi shook his head.

She has no time to care about Jin Lili's game.

I have been very busy during this period. After playing women's singles, I played women's doubles, and after women's doubles, I also played a few women's team matches.

The provincial team also invited her to participate in this year's table tennis league. After the GTT peak battle in France, she returned to Jianghuai Province and didn't even have time to enter her home. It was just like Dayu's flood control.

After taking the promotional photos for the Table Tennis Challenge League in December this year, I rushed back to Beijing without stopping, and I am still dizzy from the journey.

The whole person is busy.

The donkeys in the production team all looked at her with sympathy.

"A week ago, they played a GTT branch mixed doubles match in London and lost. After they came back, the coaching staff lectured them extensively about that match, completely draining the spirit from both players. Especially with the World Games just around the corner, losing to a foreign team at this time is quite discouraging for both of them."

"Who did you lose to?" Zhu Qi asked.

"From the Russian team, there's a woman there who's playing really well this year, her name is Snodiava." Maomao paused, then smiled at Zhu Qi. "Her playing style is very similar to yours. I guess she's studied you. Ever since you won the Women's Asian Cup, I've been asked about you in interviews. Honestly, I think you're in a bit of a precarious position right now. The moment you show up, you're being watched by the whole world."

"This is normal. It just means I'm strong. Those who are not paid attention to... are all 18th-tier players." Zhu Qi disagreed and didn't think it was a big deal for others to study him.

"When Snodiawa used the 'over-the-baseline, ultra-fast running' serve, Jin Lili felt completely stunned and her touch softened. Da Ling also played poorly and wasn't in great form. Both players made numerous errors, which led to the loss."

Zhu Qi frowned: "That shouldn't be the case. Song Linzhou can also serve like this."

"Knowing how to attack and knowing how to defend are two different things. I can also shoot hook shots, but it's still very uncomfortable for me when I'm hit by them." Maomao had just walked into the cafeteria when he heard someone calling him from a window facing the innermost part of the door.

"I'm here! Come quickly!" A Shui raised his hands high and waved towards Zhu Qi and Maomao.

After the three girls finished ordering the food they wanted to eat, they found a place to sit down.

As soon as my butt touched the bench, I heard Qin Xiaoba calling out to Zhu Qi from the seat to my right.

She looked up towards the voice and saw Song Linzhou sitting next to Qin Xiaoba.

When the two looked at each other, Song Linzhou smiled at her. Although the smile was a little forced, it was still a greeting.

You won't feel good if you lose a game.

Especially losing to outsourcing.

Compared with two years ago, Qin Xiaoba's basketball skills haven't improved much since he joined the national team, but his height has increased a lot.

She was about the same height as Zhu Qi before, but now she is obviously half a head taller than Zhu Qi when standing next to him. Once, when the two of them went out to buy sneakers on the weekend, the store manager asked them if they were brother and sister.

Sometimes it really feels unfair.

Why don't men have to overcome the hurdle of puberty?

Puberty is the most difficult period for female athletes because they have to adapt to their growing bodies. The increase in breast size puts twice the burden on the arms.

Especially for female athletes in diving, swimming and gymnastics, the impact of their growing bodies on performance is even greater.

Table tennis players are relatively better, but she also feels a sense of weight when holding the racket, which requires Zhu Qi to practice more to make up for it.

The technical breakthrough of loop balls has also reached a bottleneck.

Xu Dong knew that Zhu Qi was anxious, and she became anxious too.

In order to gain muscle, Xu Dong had thought of many ways to help her, and even asked someone to buy protein powder from abroad for her to drink.

But as soon as you have a fever, a cold or get sick, the muscles you have worked so hard to build up will disappear, and even if you wear tighter sleeves, you will immediately become as loose as a sack.

Last year, in order to make up for the power ball, Xu Dong increased the hardness of Zhu Qi's rubber, adjusting it from the initial 37 degrees to 38 degrees.

The higher the degree, the faster the ball flies.

Zhu Qi practiced hard for a while to adapt to the strength of the rubber, and his hard work finally paid off.

The men's table tennis team finished their meal, cleared their plates, and prepared to leave. The atmosphere was strangely subdued. Qin Xiaoba, usually a talkative man, had fallen silent.

Zhu Qi was just wondering when Ah Shui, the national table tennis team's "Little Trumpet," came over and said, "You don't know, do you? The men's table tennis team has been performing very poorly lately. They just got scolded by Chairman Ren. They didn't even win gold at the Asian Cup or the Asian Championships. Only Brother Xiaofeng won a silver medal at the Asian Championships. After Brother Daxiong won the World Championships, the men's team hasn't seen a singles gold medal..."

“…” Zhu Qi.

"Ah..." Zhu Qi.

"The men's doubles results were pretty average. Only Brother Ling and Brother Xiong won the men's doubles title at the peak competition, and the others were either second or third..." Ah Shui pouted. "If you ask me, the men's table tennis team is in a precarious situation right now. With two months left until the World Games, I'd be pissed off with this result, too. You haven't seen how Coach Shi has aged these days. When he left the house, I saw his hunched back and thought he was my uncle..."

Qin Xiaoba also came around to talk to Zhu Qi: "Sister, our coach Shi has been getting angry a lot these past few days. The environment is too depressing. I get scared every time I see his big leather pants. I don't even dare to enter the training hall now."

"Is it normal to get scolded for losing a game?" Zhu Qi disagreed. "If you're going to die after getting scolded, then die quickly."

Qin Xiaoba felt that it was unnecessary for him to tell this to his sister.

His sister has a strong core and never wastes energy on herself. She only consumes others. How could she understand the feelings of a loser?

But Zhu Qi did find it strange. Could it be that her presence only benefited the women's team? The men's team... well, they could only wish for the best.

She has been thinking about how to improve her strength every day and has lost countless brain cells.

Ah Shui's mood was not high either.

Her performance in the GTT series was also average.

The best result is the semi-finals.

Never made it to a single final.

Generally speaking, they lack experience in major competitions and tend to be timid when facing high-level players.

In this Tokyo cycle, A Shui has a very clear positioning of himself.

It is to serve as a sparring partner for other contestants.

Um.

That's good too.

In Zhu Qi's words, sparring partners are also an indispensable and solid force in the team.

Waiting for the World Games list to come out is like waiting for the college entrance examination results.

Everyone has something on their mind.

At night, when Zhu Qi was lying on the bed packing her racket, she found that she had forgotten her expansion oil in the training hall. She changed into sneakers and prepared to go out to look for it.

Ah Shui was sitting in her room doing her skincare when she heard someone putting on shoes next door. She came out with a face full of cucumber slices and asked, "Where are you going?"

"Get something."

"I'll accompany you!"

"No, I'll be there in a moment."

As soon as I opened the door, I heard the faint sound of Jin Lili and Ding Shushu having a heated discussion coming from the next room on the seventh floor.

"Lily, could you please not be so emotional right now? Haven't you suffered enough before? What good will it do you to argue with the coach?"

"I wasn't wrong, that's how it was. His head coach is even more insane. He gave me random instructions and insisted I hit high balls, which the two Russians kept smashing! And then he said the angle I gave was wrong and told me to change the line..."

"The World Games are just around the corner, we can't afford to start a fight. Control your temper! If the captain hears you, he'll scold you again!"

"Captain? Haha, the captain still has the mind to care about me now? Isn't that 'Golden Throne' she treasures the most now? She even went to Chairman Ren to ask for a chance to win the team quota. Doesn't the captain have principles? Doesn't the captain have a bottom line? Doesn't the captain adhere to the coaching staff's arrangements and never ask for a quota on behalf of anyone else? I've been sleeping with her for so many years, and I've been at her beck and call ever since I was promoted to the national team. I listen to her more than to Coach Da Mi. Honestly, I think I treat Sister Xia as well as my own sister! Why does she think Zhu Qi is better than me in everything?!"

"You're really incessant. The captain is doing this for your own good, asking you to change your temper and focus on your skills. Losing to Baobao two years ago was nothing. Besides, everyone has witnessed Baobao's performance over the years. I advise you to stop being so mean to her. When the captain and I retire, the only ones who can hold a rank on the team will be you, Maomao, and her. If your relationship with them is still so strained by then, how can you stay in the national team?"

"At worst, I can go abroad to fight..."

Bang——

There was a huge noise in the room, and Ding Shushu, who was usually mild-tempered, couldn't stand it anymore. She slammed the door and walked out, holding her clothes.

I happened to meet Zhu Qi who was standing at the door.

Zhu Qi was a little embarrassed and greeted her, "Sister Shushu."

Ding Shushu glared at the door behind her, then walked over to Zhu Qi. "The World Games roster hasn't been released yet, and everyone's under a lot of pressure and anger. Don't take it personally." She glanced down at Zhu Qi's sneakers and asked. "It's this late, and you're still going out?"

"I forgot something at the training hall. I'll go get it."

"Hurry up then, the dormitory inspection will start in half an hour."

After giving the instructions, Ding Shushu took a detour to the rooftop to wash clothes. Zhu Qi heard the sound of the washing machine turning above his head and stepped into the elevator.

It's still a bit chilly in Beijing in June.

Especially when the night wind blows, walking under the trees feels particularly damp.

Zhu Qi vaguely remembered that when she was getting on the elevator, Maomao seemed to shout in the house, "It's going to rain outside, take an umbrella with you", but the elevator door had already closed, and she was too lazy to bother anymore, so she just went and came back quickly.

Zhu Qi wrapped his sportswear around him and ran all the way to the training ground around the southwest pavilion.

The tall buildings standing around were lit with tiny lights, as if dancing in the darkness, and would soon be covered by the rain.

The lights in the training ground were still on and the door was not closed.

Who else could be training in there at this time? Zhu Qi knew who it was without even having to think about it.

The entire training ground was dark, with only a light on in the corner. The table was piled with white balls.

The young man's T-shirt was soaked with sweat and dried naturally, but it was soaked again not long after. After several times, the sweat left traces on his back.

This scene seems familiar.

One morning two years ago, Zhu Qi was standing at this angle watching Song Linzhou practicing his serve and told him to "add a little twist to the touch."

When Song Linzhou turned around to pick up his water cup, he saw Zhu Qi looking for expansion oil and asked in surprise, "Why are you here at this hour?"

Zhu Qi shook the expansion oil in his hand at him and said, "Get your things. Why aren't you leaving yet? I'm going to check the dormitories soon."

Song Linzhou's reaction was a little slow, and he nodded: "I'll leave now."

Zhu Qi looked at him and said, "Isn't it just a loss? Can't we just win it back next time?"

She really didn't know how to comfort people, but she felt a little pity for Song Linzhou when she saw him like this.

Although Qin Xiaoba often loses, he is a big-hearted person. He will be fully recovered after a short period of depression and does not need to comfort himself.

Song Linzhou felt a little embarrassed and whispered, "I'm fine..."

Zhu Qi said: "After losing a game, I kept practicing in silence. My mood was already very low. Even when I practiced, I was still emotional. This kind of self-torturing practice did not improve my skills at all, but only exhausted my body."

Song Linzhou asked in surprise: "How do you know I've been practicing more?"

"Because I punished myself like this when I lost the game." Zhu Qi shrugged.

The dullness in his eyes faded slightly, and there was a softer light in them, as if he had found something in common with her.

Perhaps feeling a little ashamed of being comforted by a girl three years younger than him, he lowered his head and smiled bitterly: "We didn't lose because the other team was leading all the way. We lost because the other team overtook us and reversed the situation after leading by 3-0."

Zhu Qi took a deep breath.

This really hurts.

Ever since she was reborn and started playing basketball until now, she has always been the one who overtakes and defeats others, and has never been overtaken and surpassed by others.

Four games, not a single one was won, why is that?

Although he has won a direct qualification spot in the competition, Song Linzhou is now somewhat confused about himself. Is it possible for him to compete in the World Games?

The men's singles spots will definitely belong to Xiaofeng and Daxiong. What if he plays doubles and drags down his teammates?

He knows that all athletes will have bottleneck periods.

Brother Xiaofeng once said that his bottleneck period was after his biggest competitor He Qianlu left the national team. He was confused for two years about how to play table tennis. During that time, he did not win a single championship. The championship drought of more than 600 days made Brother Xiaofeng think about retiring.

But why did my bottleneck period come so quickly?

And before the World Games?

Song Linzhou didn't understand, he felt that there was something wrong with him.

But I can’t tell where the problem is, it feels like there are problems everywhere.

There's something wrong with his tactics, his rotation, his movement... there's something wrong with his straight blade.

The problem that the coach didn't see was noticed by the girl in front of him. She frowned and asked, "Why did you go back to your traditional straight blade?"

Song Linzhou looked down at the racket in his hand and said, "After the direct tournament, the coach said we were in need of a straight-blade sparring partner and asked me to get back to my old touch and practice with the team members."

"Traditional penhold and penhold bat interspersed with each other, isn't that just nonsense?" Zhu Qi didn't understand. "You got the direct entry quota, the best resources in the team should be given to you first, why didn't you refuse?"

"I'm the only one with a straight racket in the men's team right now..."

"So what?" Zhu Qi said and suddenly realized a problem.

Although Zhu Qi doesn't like Jin Lili's personality, he admits that Jin Lili's level is indeed one of the best in the national team. Her offense is also good, and she has made considerable progress in doubles in the past two years.

If the first three games can be won, it means that the level gap between the two sides should not be big.

The subsequent reversal by the opponent may not be due to just one player, but rather a huge problem in the cooperation between the two players.

Speaking of this.

Zhu Qi thought of Song Linzhou's head coach.

There are differences in the level of players.

There are also differences in professionalism between coaches.

Previously, in a GTT feeder match, Zhu Qi had experienced the command level of his head coach.

Don't seek to be meritorious, but seek to avoid mistakes.

His command and tactical level is still at the level of 10 years ago, mainly based on conservatism and stability, and is completely unsuitable for today's table tennis matches.

When the game was paused, Song Linzhou's coach chattered on about tactics for a minute, and Zhu Qi frowned as he listened.

As soon as he walked to the table, Zhu Qi overturned all the tactics he had arranged in just one second and let Song Linzhou play according to his own style.

Fortunately, Song Linzhou listened to her and they won the game.

But Zhu Qi was still scolded by the Buddha.

Because this is a very serious violation of discipline in the cooperation between coaches and players.

It's like a general in an army gives soldiers tactics and strategies, but the soldiers don't obey his orders.

But Zhu Qi didn't want to care about these things.

As long as we can win the game.

Not everyone is like her, who was brought home by Chairman Ren himself.

She has the right to say "no", but others may not have that.

Now that the ball has become larger and it is difficult to produce spin with a straight racket, the coaching staff must focus on training with a horizontal racket, which has greater development prospects.

Even though Song Linzhou's straight-blade horizontal hitting is more lethal than his previous pure straight-blade, instability is a fatal flaw.

Personal achievements should always come after national collective honor.

Neither of them spoke. He silently stared at the girl in front of him who was angry with him, and smiled casually, "It's nothing. When no one is around, I'll continue practicing my penholder swing. If it's for the honor of the whole team, it's not a pity if I'm alone."

"What if it's a pity to lose our doubles partner as well?" Zhu Qi suddenly asked.

He was startled: "What?"

"Coach Xu asked me this morning who I thought would be a good match for a male player in mixed doubles," Zhu Qi said, looking at him. "I estimate there's an 80% chance I'll play in mixed doubles once the roster is released. Judging by the men's team, I don't have any experience playing alongside anyone else."

"Me?" He was a little dazed and repeated it uncertainly.

Is it possible? He originally thought that he might only be able to join a boy band.

Brother Xiaofeng and Daxiong are both ranked higher than him in the world, and Brother Xiaofeng and Sister Xia are old teammates. They are more familiar with major competitions and are suitable candidates for mixed doubles.

The mixed doubles team at the previous Tokyo World Games was indeed Gao Xiaofeng and Chang Hongxia.

But they did not get any ranking, and it also affected their subsequent performance in singles.

"I don't know either. The roster hasn't been released yet... But let me be clear, if we really play mixed doubles, we'll stick to what we agreed on. All the techniques and tactics will have to follow my rhythm, including your horizontal strokes with the penholder."

The boy's face gradually brightened in the fading light.

"Then I'll listen to you."

/

The list of players for the World Games is finally out.

The men's doubles team consists of two main players who have been together for a long time, Xiaoshu and Dagang.

Men's singles: Gao Xiaofeng, Lu Yaohan.

Mixed doubles: Zhu Qi, Song Linzhou.

Women's doubles: Ding Shushu, Jin Lili.

Mixed Team: (Men's) Gao Xiaofeng, Lü Yaohan, Song Linzhou, Xiaoshu. (Women's) Chang Hongxia, Zu Tianjiao, Jin Lili, Ding Shushu. One P-card male and female team each: Zhu Qi, Dagang.

Sparring partner: a team and other mobile personnel.

A Shui also felt it was a pity.

I was just a non-staff member and was not qualified to get on the bus.

But she also knew it in her heart.

My current level is not enough to participate in such a big event as the World Games.

If she can make up for it, maybe she can participate in women's doubles with Zhu Qi.

Xu Dong felt that this list was both expected and unexpected.

Originally, she thought Zhu Qi had a chance to be in the mixed team, but there was no spot for Zhu Qi in the mixed team and she was given a mixed doubles spot instead.

It's good, but not that good.

"Mixed doubles is the newest event added to the World Games. Previously, no one knew how to play it, which means you'll be competing against male players from around the world for the first time on a world-class stage. If Ah Shui could handle it, you could also play in women's doubles. But unfortunately, Ah Shui's performance in the GTT series was mediocre, so he can only serve as a sparring partner. Da Ling's style complements yours. You can encourage him to play more aggressively, and he can provide support from the far table. This mixed doubles event will be very challenging for both of you, as you'll be competing against the world's top male players. The double-attack style also suits you and Da Ling, and you can surprise the mixed doubles players from other associations."

Xu Dong looked at Zhu Qi, his eyes full of expectation and worry.

She is only 17 years old. Can she withstand this pressure?

If I had known earlier, I would have cultivated the chemistry between Zhu Qi and Maomao more and played women's doubles first.

The pressure on mixed doubles may be greater than Xu Dong initially predicted.

"Many players practice at a very high level at home, but become intimidated when they step onto the field for a major competition. Even Gao Xiaofeng couldn't even perform at 50% of his usual level in his first World Games and was nearly eliminated in the second round. The World Games are no joke. Losing is a betrayal to the entire nation, and it can also leave a lifelong psychological scar on the players. Some may even fail and never compete again."

Zhu Qi nodded.

She believed this.

Because they had coached players in the club before, many players have privately gained more confidence and feel that they will definitely win!

As a result, when I got on the court, my hands and feet were not right.

There are problems everywhere.

Xu Dong's mood is very complicated now. On the one hand, he is happy that Zhu Qi has the opportunity to play, but on the other hand, he is a little worried that Zhu Qi cannot withstand such great pressure.

Watching Xu Dong and Zhu Qi talking, Ren Xinhua stood not far away and kept looking at the young girl.

This girl is growing up very fast.

He is already much better than when he first joined the national team two years ago.

It's a pity that she is too young.