Chapter 1378: Interception on the way

Prediction!

A very important part of tennis is prediction. If you wait for your opponent to attack before you start, you will easily fall into a passive position, and every step will be slow.

Ultimately, prediction is a talent that, in addition to intuition and perception, also involves the ability to read the game, calculate probability, draw inferences from one example, and so on.

Of course, everything happens in a flash, and the brain's speed often cannot keep up with the changes in the ball, so the subconscious still plays an important role.

It is for this reason that the more times you play against each other and the more familiar you become with the opponent, the more accurate your prediction of the ball's trajectory will be.

One of the important reasons why the Big Four can always offer peak confrontations is:

They have met each other too many times, far more than any other player, even on the historical list. They are too familiar with each other, their predictions are more accurate, and their routines are well-known. On the one hand, this leads to more stalemates in offense and defense, and on the other hand, it forces the players to break their own routines and seek different means and strategies to gain an advantage.

Look back to the present moment.

This was the first meeting between Gao Wen and Tsonga in their careers, and they were not familiar with each other; but as the match entered the fifth set, their respective styles and routines were fully displayed.

So, the next step is to look at the individual abilities of the players:

Read the game, analyze the game, and predict the game.

The past four games are the best data. It depends on who can extract more nutrients from these data and turn them into their own weapons to break the deadlock.

As it happens, this is Gawain’s strong point.

From the perspective of forehand shots, Tsonga has comprehensive abilities. He has no problem with diagonal, straight line, small ball, high lob, etc. It is worthy of being his strongest weapon.

However, when Tsonga chooses to change the line, he often relies on his personal strength to force the ball forward, and does not rely on increasing the speed of the racket head. This way of hitting the ball also causes the forehand straight line to lack some stability - because of insufficient friction, naturally, the control is also weaker.

Therefore, when Tsonga chooses to hit the forehand straight line, he tends to reduce the force slightly to increase control and avoid going out of bounds.

Of course, such differences in details are not obvious in the game. Even if Tson increases or decreases the force, the deterrent power of his forehand straight line is still very strong.

The real impact is that when Tsonga is ready to attack with all his strength and use his strength to suppress or even win points, he often chooses diagonal lines.

Because this route completely leaves out the option of a full-scale brute force attack.

In contrast, a forehand straight line attack is often paired with a follow-up to the net, creating interference through pressure in front of the net to make up for the slight loss of power in a straight line shot.

The conclusion drawn from these experiences is that the key to prediction is to observe the landing point of your return ball and Tsonga's footsteps.

Then, Gawain immediately moved to attack: right side, forehand.

really!

Tsonga chose the diagonal line.

Even before Tsonga hit the ball, Gawain had already moved ahead to buy himself some time.

The steps are smooth and in place.

Unfortunately, it was still a little rushed and crowded.

Tsonga's forehand attack relies on the instantaneous burst of strength and speed to suppress the opponent, which is an advantage on the physical level. Even though Gawain has moved in advance, he can still deeply feel the continuous impact brought by the tail force of the shot. The limited space left for him to hit the ball is still a problem.

Gawain, think quickly—

Your current moving position is at a disadvantage. If you rashly choose to attack, you will further lose your position, and your subsequent defense may be very passive.

Moreover, Tsonga's position is still in the midfield, where he can attack or defend. His own breakthrough may not be able to break through Tsonga's blockade.

This is the deciding set and he needs to play smarter and more efficiently.

In a split second, Gawain had already made his choice based on his strategy for the final round:

Cutting.

As Gao Wen had predicted and moved his feet in advance and was basically in place, he did not choose to hit the wall to fight back, but instead cut with his forehand.

Rotation, straight line, using softness to overcome hardness.

Gao Wen's entire shot seemed very light and soft. His footwork and racket swing, which were slightly squeezed, were all eased by the cutting action. He regained his center of gravity and completed the adjustment in a short moment. Then, he wrapped the tennis ball and cut out a backward spin.

Light, agile, and dancing gracefully.

Tsonga was a little surprised, but he moved very promptly, from the center of the court to his left side, and was in position in two big strides.

Backspin!

Strong backspin!

Tsonga immediately realized Gawain's tactical intentions.

If Tsonga was standing at the baseline at this time, then facing the cut, he could directly attack with force, seize the weak shot of Gawain to return the ball to further expand his advantage, and even score the winning point in one shot, because the cut is equivalent to giving up the initiative.

But at this time Tsonga's footsteps are within the baseline, at the junction of the frontcourt and the backcourt. From a positive point of view, it is a position where "you can attack or defend". From a negative point of view, it is a "slightly awkward position where you can neither go up nor down". It all depends on how the two players play and how they choose.

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Gao Wen used strong backspin to cut a deep ball:

The landing point is basically parallel to Tsonga's position; at the same time, it still has a strong downward spin and falls quickly over the net.

This also means that if Tsonga tries to go to the net, he will be stuck and it will be too late for him to try to retreat, putting him in an awkward situation of being caught between a rock and a hard place.

Tsonga's only option is to move sideways, but then he has to face the problem of hitting the rebounding ball at his feet, which is not easy to handle.

In a passive situation, Gawain slowed down the pace by cutting, which put Tsonga in an awkward position.

However, Tsonga's mind was clear and he was not nervous or panicked at all.

A big step.

Two big steps.

Tsonga is 188cm tall and weighs 93kg. He is tall and strong, and always moves a little clumsily. His footwork is obviously not his best skill.

Despite this, his big strides seemed powerful and he had caught up with the opponent in a blink of an eye, but he had no intention of braking and continued to walk.

Three big steps.

It looked like Tsonga was about to collide head-on with Gawain's return ball at the intersection, causing a tragic car accident.

But see!

Tsonga took advantage of the situation and jumped up, his heavy body making way for the tennis ball. The racket appeared in front of his body and he actively swung it forward, not even waiting for the tennis ball to hit the ground. He intercepted the ball halfway before it continued to fall, and with the strength of his wrist and forearm, he made a gun flower in front of him and cut the tennis ball back.

It is both an interception and a cut.

At this time, Tsonga showed his excellent physical talent. Even though he was bulky, he relied on the strength of his wrist to complete an extremely difficult cutting and volley in the short time he stayed in the air.

Not only did it solve Gao Wen's cutting problem, but it also made full use of the court again.

The tennis ball flew out in a full parabola, high and floating, with a super rotation, flying along a diagonal line, aiming at the blind spot at the baseline of Gao Wen's backhand position.

From Tsonga's left baseline to Gawain's left blind spot, this return shot was a great move that attracted the attention of the entire audience.

(End of this chapter)