Chapter 1299: Sweating like crazy

Trampling!

Trampling!

Push off the ground, pause, start, and sprint.

On the red soil, the control of footsteps is obviously different, which can be felt from the sound; as a result, the sweat flying in the air is also different, as if one can deeply feel the dusty dryness, and the scorching hot water droplets blooming like petals on the red soil.

Sky, cloudy.

Looking up, the sun is neither hot nor strong. Compared with New York in August and Melbourne in January, Paris in May can even be said to be cool.

Here, you won't feel the scorching heat of midsummer yet, and there's even a bit of the leisure and comfort of early summer. There's no skin-breaking sun beatings, and no chest tightness and dehydration caused by excessive humidity. In all aspects, Paris seems to have the most satisfying and comfortable competition environment of the four Grand Slams.

However, this is not the case.

Although the weather in Paris is not as fierce and drastic as in London, where you can experience all four seasons in just one day, it is still changeable.

Sometimes it is cloudy, sometimes it drizzles; the sun is still scorching in the afternoon, and you need to wear a coat in the evening; one day is late autumn, and the next day is midsummer.

I heard from other players that the weather in Paris is really special, even more special than that in London. The weather and environment are slightly different for almost every game, so they need to adapt to the game every year, and check the weather forecast every moment every day and make adjustments based on the situation.

The effects of wind direction and humidity are further amplified by the red soil.

It is also because of this that Roland Garros has always been regarded as the venue with the toughest, most changeable and most difficult playing conditions among the four Grand Slams.

This year, Gao Wen is experiencing the unique experience of Paris.

After Gao Hongli and Jiang Yanyun arrived in Paris, they thought the weather here was a bit dry. After all, they had always lived in the coastal area.

Personally, Gawain feels it's okay, mainly because he lived in California during middle school and university, where the climate is surrounded by deserts and is much drier than Paris. However, Gawain can also understand that it is drier than Rome and more humid than Madrid, and the overall environment is indeed most similar to Monte Carlo.

Moreover, the feeling is slightly different every day. Yesterday it was a little drier, but today it is cloudy, so the sweating rate has increased significantly.

Perhaps, for ordinary residents living in Paris, the difference is felt but not so obvious; but for professional athletes who need to devote themselves to sports every day, the feeling is obvious, and even the frequency of breathing adjustment has some small differences.

No wonder everyone says the French Open is the ultimate challenge of the four Grand Slams.

In other competitions, one might just need to arrive in the city early to adapt to the weather and environment, and then devote oneself to the competition. However, in Paris, subtle adjustments need to be made every day. The closer the competition is to that of top players, the more important the role of details becomes. This is definitely not an easy task.

Look, Gao Wen just changed his jersey thirty minutes ago, and now it is completely wet, with sweat dripping down like a small river.

However, Gao Hongli, who was standing on the sidelines watching the training, felt refreshed.

Of course, one exercises and the other does not, the latter will definitely not sweat, but even if not sweating, such a dry appearance still forms a sharp contrast. At this time, it can be seen that today's weather is slightly cool, and you can't feel the heat, and the humidity is also higher than usual.

This situation reminded Gao Hongli of Melbourne.

However, Melbourne is hot and humid, so it is easy to get cramps and become dehydrated; while Paris is cool and humid, and it is easy to strain if you are not careful.

At this time, Agassi, as the head coach, was standing in the court, not far behind Gawain, directing the training; there were two players standing on the opposite side of the court, one on the left and one on the right, and Gawain was hitting the ball back and forth against two of them. The intensity of the entire training had reached a new level, and naturally he was sweating profusely.

Sampras was standing in the stands. Throughout this year's clay court season, he was responsible for collecting and analyzing data and serving as an assistant coach.

After watching for a while, Sampras quickly lowered his head and wrote down some key words in his notebook. He raised his head and caught a glimpse of Gao Hongli from the corner of his eye. He seemed to be able to sense Gao Hongli's confusion, and there was a hint of worry between his brows, so he took the initiative to ask, "What's wrong?"

Gao Hongli is not a professional, and he does not intend to interfere with the work of the coaching team, but he is very willing to ask questions humbly and learn some knowledge.

"…In the last few balls, Gao Wen's backhand shots all went into the net. Was he adjusting the arc of his shot?"

The point is, Gawain's shots went into the net repeatedly, but Agassi did not adjust. Instead, he quietly observed Gawain's swing, as if he was encouraging Gawain to continue.

This is the part that confuses Gao Hongli.

Sampras smiled.

"Today, the overall humidity is a little higher. Under such conditions, the tennis ball tends to bounce lower, and the ball trajectory needs to be adjusted."

"Originally, when it comes to the clay court season, we all encourage Gao Wen to add more topspin, especially on his forehand; but in weather like today, we need to change some strategies. Considering that the tennis ball does not bounce that high, he should be more aggressive when hitting the ball and lower the arc."

"If it's a hard court, these changes in strokes can often be accomplished with just a little adjustment, and Gao Wen's transitions are very smooth."

"But on clay, because the return ball has a different spin, more adjustments need to be made when changing the stroke, and Gao Wen is not used to it yet."

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In fact, this is also a training that runs through the entire clay court season: how to change the way of hitting the ball according to changes in the situation?

On hard courts, the need for these changes is inherently less and simpler; on clay, not only are there more changes, but the technique is also more difficult.

Even during the same game, the weather and conditions may change slightly, so tactics need to be adjusted all the time.

From tactical layout to technical execution, and from technical changes in turn affecting tactical choices, it can be seen that the complexity of the entire tactical system has risen to a higher level. Therefore, many hard court masters have difficulty adapting to the clay court.

Not only the venue, but the whole way of playing is different.

It is also because of this that among the new generation of players, the simpler, rougher and more straightforward their playing tactics are, the less they are adapted to and the less they like clay.

Bublik and Kyrgios have said more than once that they hate clay, but they are completely unaware of the underlying reasons.

In Sampras' opinion, Gawain has made rapid progress and has undergone a complete transformation compared to a month ago, but he is not yet a master of clay court.

"When I was still active, I was unable to complete this kind of adjustment. Gao Wen's progress in a short period of time has been outstanding. Just give him a little more time. He is on the right track."

"You should know that it takes a lot of courage to follow Gawain back to this city that broke my heart and constantly reminded me of how stupid and clumsy a player I am."

Sampras made a self-deprecating remark, and the atmosphere immediately became relaxed, causing Gao Hongli to chuckle.

(End of this chapter)