Chapter 1331: Another Rising Star

Susan Lenglen, one of the greatest players in the history of women's tennis, can even be said to be one of the pioneer adventurers who opened up a whole new world.

First, she was the first female tennis player ever to turn professional, and between 1919 and 1926, she lost only one match.

Secondly, the early women's tennis uniforms were derived from the clothing of medieval noble ladies. They all wore long-sleeved long skirts, paired with top hats or square scarves. The cuffs had to wrap tightly around the wrists and the hems had to cover the ankles. Such inconvenient and cumbersome clothing was the strict rule for tennis dress at the time.

It was not until the emergence of Lenglen that she changed long sleeves to short sleeves and paired them with loose knee-length pleated skirts and long skirts, making it easier to play in the game. This became an important turning point in the history of women's tennis apparel and laid the foundation for the subsequent century-long transformation process.

By the way, later, in 2018, in order to prevent blood clots in her thigh, Serena Williams designed a stunning "Black Panther outfit" to compete in the French Open. Although this outfit was later banned by the event, she also opened a door for female players——

Since then, the rule that female players must wear skirts has been abolished, and they can choose shorts if they wish.

From Lenglen to Serena Williams, the changes and evolutions in women's tennis apparel have lasted exactly a hundred years.

Finally, Lenglen’s contribution was not just an innovation or a breakthrough. On the court, the four Grand Slams had not yet entered the open era, so the events she could participate in were very limited. Despite this, she still showed her top level:

Six French Open titles and seven Wimbledon titles, covering singles, doubles, mixed doubles, etc., including four singles titles.

Lenglen's dominant performance on the court also made him one of the strong promoters of the professionalization of tennis.

Unfortunately, this legend died young due to pernicious anemia at the age of only 39.

To this day, the French Tennis Federation, in order to commemorate this legendary figure, not only named the second largest stadium after Suzanne Lenglen, but also named the women's singles championship trophy after her. Every early summer, it is located in the suburbs of Paris, welcoming tennis enthusiasts from all over the world.

Today, Gao Wen is about to step onto this court and start his first trip to Roland Garros.

Although it is not the center court Philippe Chatrier, Gawain's mentality is still very stable. After all, objectively speaking, everything is new. No matter which court it is, it is the first time for Gawain to experience it. It is an honor for him to be able to play against Suzanne Lenglen for the first time in his career at Roland Garros instead of playing on a small court outside.

A little bit excited, a little bit excited, and also a little bit nervous.

But Gawain believed he had done it—

"Bang!"

There was an explosive shout from behind him. The explosive sound created by the mouth exploded on the eardrum. Gao Wen, who was concentrating on feeling the atmosphere of the game, was severely frightened. But before he could turn around to respond, a big Samoyed-like dog opened its arms and hugged him tightly.

He kept repeating it in his mouth, accompanied by a cheerful laugh.

"Feel sorry."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, but I just couldn't help it. God, I just can't help playing pranks."

"Sure enough, I am a bad boy."

Turning around, Gawain saw a face full of smiles, constantly apologizing in a flattering manner, as if he could see an invisible tail wagging.

Sometimes he is smug, sometimes he looks aggrieved. His vivid facial expressions are so vivid that you can feel the emotional changes without words.

France-Tiafoe, Gawain's first opponent at the French Open.

Tiafoe, born in 1998, is an American player.

Like the Williams sisters, he came from a poor family. His father was a janitor at a tennis hall, so he spent his childhood playing on the tennis court.

At first, Tiafoe could only pick up discarded rackets from other children in the trash can to practice tennis, but later, his talent and ability gradually emerged and was appreciated by a coach at the tennis center, Misha-Kuouzmetzov, who not only sponsored him to continue training, but also began to serve as his coach and enlighten Tiafoe.

Later, with the help of Kuznetsov, Tiafoe gradually realized his talent, received scholarship sponsorship from the state program and a tennis scholarship from Salisbury University, officially entered the NCAA system, and embarked on his tennis career.

Tiafoe is a talented North American hard court player. His powerful serve and forehand are his trump cards, and his forehand is very distinctive.

Tiafoe's forehand action is a bit awkward. When the ball is near the body, it is not a flat push-out shot, but a shot that goes around a small circle. This bottom-up pull-up shot not only maintains the power and speed of the flat shot, but can also create a strong tail force. The quality of the ball is very special.

Unlike Nadal's strong topspin, Tiafoe's forehand does not spin, but has strong staying power, a bit like "bone-dissolving palm". The residual power after the impact will bring continuous destructiveness.

Thanks to his talent, Tiafoe began to emerge early on, with his highest world ranking reaching second during his teenage years. After entering university, he frequently participated in future tournaments during his freshman year, and his overall growth rate was exceptionally gratifying.

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This year, while participating in NCAA competitions, Tiafoe's world ranking broke into the top 300 in just four months. So in April, Tiafoe did not continue to participate in the subsequent NCAA competitions and announced his professional career. Then, he received a wild card from the French Open.

He has only been a professional for a month and is about to step onto the first Grand Slam stage of his career.

From this perspective, Tiafoe will enter the world of Grand Slams earlier than future top players such as Zverev, Tsitsipas, Medvedev, etc.

Looking back from the historical height of 2022, Tiafoe has outstanding talent, but his offensive means are relatively single, and his defensive ability is far from being able to compete with the top players. Therefore, when he meets the top players, he always lacks a kind of tenacity. It was not until August 2022 that he ushered in a new high in his career ranking:

Twenty-third.

As for the Grand Slams, he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2019 and made an unexpected advance to the semifinals of the US Open in 2022; in addition, he had an impressive performance of advancing to the round of 16 at the US Open for two consecutive years.

Of course, never underestimate Tiafoe's impact. His tennis idol is Del Potro, and he most desires to play a smooth attack like Del Potro. Therefore, once this "stage-pleasure player" gets into the state, the impact he brings will often make it difficult for players to cope with.

Tiafoe has a very cheerful and sunny personality. His laughter can always be heard wherever he goes. At the young age of seventeen, he is not only the funny guy but also the mascot of the tour. He truly has friends all over the world and is particularly close to even the Big Four.

Just like now, even though the game is about to start, Tiafoe still has the mind to joke with Gawain.

(End of this chapter)