Chapter 1435: All is quiet
Focus!
The more special the moment, the more you need to focus, go all out, and pour all your energy into the game without reservation. This is the respect and tribute to the God of War and the opponent, and it is the way to complete the game with dignity.
Gao Wen believes that Nadal does not need sympathy or leniency, because Nadal has not given up the fight. They will continue to strive for victory in a fair and just manner in the competitive sports arena.
really--
On the break point, Nadal refused to surrender.
You come. I go.
Stalemate.
In this point, both Gawain and Nadal have mobilized their full strength, and the baseline confrontation back and forth covers the entire court, from forehand to forehand, from forehand to backhand, and then from backhand to forehand, an all-out confrontation.
Nadal once cut the ball to move Gawain to the front of the net, but because of Gawain's lob, the ball was returned to the baseline. The offense and defense transitions between the two players were breathtaking, with high-quality offense and high-quality defense confronting each other.
Until——
Gao Wen seized an opportunity that was not an opportunity and suppressed Nadal's forehand for two consecutive shots, forcing Nadal's forehand quality to decline.
Then.
For the third consecutive shot, Gao Wen adjusted his steps, grabbed a rising point, turned sideways and hit a forehand, attacking with full force, and using a skateboard-style shot to tear open the angle.
Forehand!
Still a forehand! Ah! Ahhhhhhhhh!
Gao Wen, fully unleashed, his powerful forehand attack broke the rhythm and balance unreasonably, and directly penetrated Nadal's forehand defense line——
Win, score.
In the third game of the fourth set, the match went on for twelve minutes and ended with Gao Wen breaking the serve.
Nadal is almost out of energy.
This round also became the final turning point. With the momentum of breaking the serve in this round, Gao Wen accelerated across the board and widened the gap in one go.
Nadal has indeed fallen behind. Not only has the quality of his forehand shots further declined, but the effectiveness of his defensive moves has also dropped significantly.
A glance at the post-match technical statistics will reveal the difference between the two players.
Throughout the game, there was a clear gap between the two players in terms of winning points. Gawain scored 51 winning points, while Nadal only had a pitiful 18. This set of data can be said to be a microcosm of the entire game.
Among them, Nadal's signature weapon, the forehand, only scored four winning points.
Of course, Gawain's outstanding backhand performance was undoubtedly an important key reason, which restricted Nadal's forehand. Despite this, it can still be seen that Nadal's forehand was in poor condition.
The fourth set hasn't ended yet, but... the game is over.
After breaking the serve in the third game, Gao Wen was unstoppable and Nadal was in a slump.
From physical problems to forehand condition to defensive returns, the quality of the entire game faced obvious fluctuations. Although Nadal still did not give up, he was still fighting hard, still fighting, still playing every point conscientiously, and still trying to hold on to the game, but there were many difficulties.
“5:1”.
After the third game, Gao Wen launched an attack in the fifth game, saving three game points and then cashing in on the third break point to break the serve for the second time.
After holding his serve again, Gao Wen was already far ahead in the fourth set.
Nadal still did not give up or surrender. He prepared step by step with a meticulous attitude as if it was the first game of the match.
Amid the cheers of the audience, Nadal saved a break point and match point and held his serve. The entire Philippe Chatrier was boiling with excitement.
“5:2”.
I never thought that just holding serve could be so exciting and thrilling, driving the audience inside and outside the stadium crazy.
The pressure came to Gawain's side.
Next, Gao Wen played steadily in his own serve-winning game, once again showing his big heart, and quickly gained a foothold and entered the game.
"40:0".
Three match points in a row.
Nadal was not moved at all, and he was fully focused on the game, playing every point conscientiously, and then, Nadal scored -
Forehand, diagonal, through, and forehand whip saves at the extreme position, he scored the fourth forehand winning point of the entire game.
Boom!
The audience threw their rationality directly into the raging fire, and the whole audience went crazy.
"Pah! Rafa!"
"Pah! Rafa!"
The cheers were so overwhelming that it seemed as if one could feel the magma surging beneath one's feet.
Amid the cheers from the audience, Nadal once again launched a desperate counterattack -
"40:15".
Nadal started to break the routine from the moment he received the serve, disrupting Gawain's layout, and the two players engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand battle at the baseline.
Eight beats.
Fourteen beats.
The lungs were burning and exploding, and the entire brain was in a roar and buzzing sound.
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Twenty-two beats.
Thirty-four beats.
From technical to physical collisions, and finally to a spiritual contest, both players have entered an anaerobic state, relying purely on instinct to hit the ball, but in a split second they are still trying to restrain their opponents.
Forty-one beats.
Push off the ground and brake.
Take off and leap.
Forehand, whip with all your strength, relying on the wrapping of the wrist to push out a straight line -
Back kick.
From Gawain, aiming for a surprise attack from behind where Nadal had just left.
This was not an attacking opportunity at all. Obviously, Gawain's footsteps were not in place, but Gawain still gritted his teeth and burned his inner energy to complete the shot. It was not only sudden but also resolute, completely breaking Nadal's prediction.
Nadal paused, braked suddenly, and prepared to turn around to save the ball.
However, his legs were completely powerless and he could not push off the ground. He finally relied on his willpower to turn around and jump, throwing his body out.
…touch the ball, success.
Unfortunately, he was unable to swing the racket, and it hit the tennis ball directly, causing an accident, and the tennis ball flew high towards the audience stands.
In the 42nd shot, he was unable to return to the court.
The game is over.
"4:6", "7:5", "6:4", "6:2".
Gawain finally delivered on the third match point and won the match in a comeback, becoming the second player after Soderling to defeat Nadal at Roland Garros, ending Nadal's bid for a sixth consecutive French Open title and setting Nadal's winning streak at Roland Garros at more than 39 games.
It's over. It's all over.
In this way, the extremely long tug-of-war of 41 rounds ended with Gawain finding a breakthrough by attacking Nadal's forehand, thus ending this game that carried countless expectations and significance.
Tragic, brutal, and blood-boiling.
When Nadal's final powerful shot failed to turn the tide and the tennis ball flew away, there was no cheering or celebration at the Philippe Chatrier Stadium, but instead a brief silence and shock.
They witnessed such a battle in person, and needed a little time to digest and settle it.
Perhaps, judging from the score, Nadal lost the fourth set very badly, but the audience who watched the whole game knew that even if he was exhausted and in poor condition, Nadal still fought to the last moment. The actual situation was far from as easy as the score seemed.
In the end, the entire match lasted three hours and forty minutes. Nadal had indeed used up his last bit of energy, and it could be said that he was at the end of his rope. He left no regrets on this court and in this city.
They should applaud Gawain's victory, but they should also take their hats off to Nadal for his hard work.
The whole place was completely silent, only the heart was beating, trembling slightly as it felt the surge of emotions.
(End of this chapter)