Chapter 1094: Endless Fun
Reporters, it’s Chinese New Year.
Indian Wells is worthy of being the "fifth Grand Slam". From topics to popularity to discussion, it has exploded in all aspects and is in no way inferior to Melbourne Park.
Moreover, based on the Australian Open, we can actually go one step further. This season's men's tennis is getting more and more interesting and exciting.
In the finals, are we looking forward to "Gawain vs. Raonic" or "Gawain vs. Federer"? Regardless of the former or the latter, it will be a bloody battle, comparable to the Australian Open final, attracting all attention.
Wait, is it comparable to the Australian Open final? If it's "Gawain vs. Milos Raonic", is it also comparable? Not necessarily?
In fact, if Raonic can really beat Federer and enter the final, the meaning of the game will be different, but it will indeed make history.
As mentioned before, since the 2005 French Open, the Big Four have never missed a Grand Slam final, and at least one member of the Big Four has been able to reach the final stage. This record was broken until the 2014 US Open, when Galvin and Cilic both met in the semifinals in an upset.
A full ten years.
This is also the most intuitive data of the Big Four’s peak dominance.
In addition to the Grand Slams, the same is true for the Masters.
Of course, the Masters has more variables, and the dominance of the Big Four has obviously loosened. In addition, the Big Four may not necessarily attend all Masters, which also gives other players more opportunities.
despite this!
Since the 2005 Indian Wells Masters, in the past ten years, in the 90 Masters tournaments, the number of times that all four giants have been blocked from the finals can be counted on one hand:
Nine times, to be exact.
Paris in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, Hamburg and Cincinnati in 2006, Indian Wells and Miami in 2010.
That’s all.
At a glance.
First of all, the Paris Masters at the end of the year is the tournament where the dominance of the Big Four is the loosest. The Big Four have collectively missed the finals five times in total.
Secondly, it appeared three times in 2006 and 2010.
That was an era when Djokovic and Murray had not yet completed their transformation, the term "Big Four" had not yet emerged, and men's tennis was still a two-man show.
However, after Djokovic and Murray completed the puzzle, the only time the Big Four missed the Masters final was in Paris in 2012.
Finally, the last time the Big Four all missed the Masters final was in Paris in 2012, exactly two years ago, in the familiar Paris again, when Ferrer and Janowicz broke through.
So? If Raonic can beat Federer and reach the final against Galen, then the match itself will be of epoch-making significance.
Perhaps, it is slightly inferior to last year's US Open final, but it is still the first Masters final between the "post-90s" generation.
The craze of "Big Four vs. Challengers" will go one step further.
To some extent, media reporters seem to be more looking forward to the matchup between Gawain and Raonic. After all, it is more topical and discussed.
but……
Think about it from another perspective. Is there really anyone who can resist the performance of "Gawain vs. Federer 2.0"? Dubai, this happened just two weeks ago!
Gawain lost to Federer, ending his undefeated streak of the season. From then on, the media never let Gawain go, making things difficult for him, harassing him, and hyping him up all the way.
Not even a second to breathe.
Afterwards, from Dubai to Auckland to Indian Wells, the complaints, the ridicule, the mockery and the pressure never stopped.
Assuming that Federer beats Raonic and enters the final, it also means that Gao Wen has a chance.
Or, beat Federer and shut up the media.
Or, lose to Federer and set yourself up for disaster.
Obviously, Gawain is looking forward to a chance at revenge to "prove himself," but here's the kicker:
In just two months, the Big Four all won?
In just two weeks, can he learn from his mistakes and turn the situation around when facing Federer again? The difficulty is not a little bit, to be precise, it should be extremely difficult.
Although Gao Wen has once again created an incredible feat in Melbourne, becoming the first player to defeat three giants consecutively in a Grand Slam.
However, Nadal returned from injury and Murray returned from injury. Strictly speaking, only Djokovic's game was convincing.
However, victory is still victory, and a champion is still a champion. The media did not deny Gao Wen’s championship glory and halo. The difference is that it is more demanding, more difficult, and more sharp, that’s all.
This is also the important reason why the media made such a fuss and made a fuss about nothing after the loss in Dubai. They expected Gawain to give a more convincing and dominant performance. They expected Gawain to truly carry the banner of the "Challenger Alliance" and break the existing tennis landscape.
But what if you can’t?
The media will definitely not miss such an opportunity and will definitely keep attacking Gao Wen.
The same is true now.
The media still doesn't think Gawain can beat Federer. It's definitely not that simple.
The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!
Deep down, the media is just as conflicted as the fans.
On the one hand, they are looking forward to Gawain or Wawrinka or other new generation players emerging to seize power and break the total dominance of the Big Four.
On the other hand, they resist the end of the Big Four era. After all, they grew up with the Big Four and witnessed the grandeur of the entire era.
This contradictory emotion of expectation and resistance continued to pull them together, so they were particularly harsh when dealing with people like Gao Wen, Wawrinka and Raonic.
They are already harsh and picky enough at ordinary times, and now they are even worse.
The media is ready.
How should they write headlines if Gawain loses to Federer again?
"The king of football is still the king of football, and your uncle is still your uncle."
"The challenger came in strong, but Federer said: No."
"Federer defends the glory of the Big Four, and challengers still need to wait for a while to take over."
Or maybe——
"Djokovic is still No. 1 in the world, but Federer is still No. 1 in the world."
"Federer has done what Nadal, Djokovic and Murray have not been able to do."
"Against Gawain? Federer, two wins in a row!"
The media had no problem making things difficult for Serjan, creating discord between Federer and Djokovic, and were looking forward to a good show.
Anyway, the media always, forever and consistently chooses to stand on Federer's side.
Gao Wen: It turns out that I am just a tool.
And so on and so forth.
Even if you just imagine it, it is already fun. With the continuous inspiration, how can the media miss such fun? So, "Gawain vs. Raonic" or "Gawain vs. Federer"? This is simply a century-old question, and there is no choice. The men's professional tennis world is full of new vitality, and it is a topic and a focus everywhere. The media is in the happiest and most beautiful period.
They were looking forward to an exciting 2015 season, but they still didn't expect it to be this exciting. They really couldn't ask for more.
(End of this chapter)