Chapter 1711 Looking to the Future
"Before this match, the media and netizens called you 'the ultimate challenge mission'. After defeating Djokovic at Melbourne Park and Nadal at Roland Garros, you have the hope of defeating Federer at Wimbledon and completing the most difficult and extreme ultimate challenge of the ATP in the past decade."
"In fact, you had a chance before, in a long set decider, and got a match point."
"One point away, you would have completed this ultimate challenge, but unfortunately, the game ended up in a different way."
"What I want to ask is, do you feel this pressure, and does it have any impact on the direction of the game?"
As expected, what was supposed to come finally came.
Gawain did not respond immediately, but instead showed a focused expression as if he was listening attentively, and raised his chin slightly, "Ahaha."
And then... nothing happened.
Gao Wen seemed to be lost in thought, so much so that the press conference room fell into a brief silence, and Gao Wen showed an unexpected expression.
"Is that all?"
"Sorry, I thought there was going to be a rabbit in the hat next. I was waiting for that."
Was he complaining about the reporter's question being dull? Gao Wen didn't even wait for the reporter to respond and continued speaking.
"Of course, we all know what happened in the last 10 years, Novak at Melbourne Park, Rafa at Roland Garros, Roger at this stadium, they really did create a lot of miracles, there is no doubt that they pushed the game to a whole new level on these courts.
“But for me personally, the emphasis might be slightly different.”
“My focus is on the players.”
"It's true that Novak performed well in Melbourne Park, but in Paris, New York and London, Novak is still not an easy opponent; everyone knows that Rafa is the ultimate challenge on clay, but if anyone thinks that Rafa can be easily beaten on other courts, it is absolutely wrong."
"For me, at Wimbledon, against Gregor, against Andy, against Roger, the challenge and the pressure are the same."
"I'm a novice on the grass, and I still have a lot to learn. Standing in front of them, the only thing I can do is to challenge them with all my strength."
"I am also looking forward to beating Roger at Wimbledon and reaching the final to qualify for the challenge against Novak. Believe me, I am very, very looking forward to 'writing another chapter of history'..."
The self-deprecating tone and cheerful expression made the reporters laugh again.
“But I don’t think that’s the first thing I need to think about.”
"I am arrogant and cocky, but not to this extent."
Ha ha!
Laughter broke out again in the press conference room.
"I look forward to meeting Roger in the Grand Slam in the future and changing the situation. Then, we can discuss what the ultimate challenge of 'beating Federer at Wimbledon' means. What do you think?"
The reporters are still the same reporters; but Gawain is also still the same Gawain.
When faced with difficult problems, Gao Wen can always find different entry points and give a response that seems old-fashioned but can bring different feelings -
At present, Gawain has the upper hand in the head-to-head record against Nadal, Djokovic and Murray, with Federer being the only exception: one win and two losses.
Moreover, Federer defeated Gawain on the Grand Slam stage, giving Gawain the second Grand Slam defeat in his career.
All of this is indeed very important.
Gao Wen did not have lofty ambitions to consider those illusory history, but kept his feet on the ground and focused on himself, his opponents and the game. This was especially precious when he was summarizing the first year of his brilliant career.
Perhaps, some people will express disdain, saying "Isn't it just a little bit of humility?" or "Isn't this a basic quality?"; but only those who have truly experienced it and been in it know that it is never easy to remain true to yourself in the face of glory and honor.
Especially since Gawain was only nineteen years old.
at the same time--
"Gao Wen, what are your prospects for the upcoming finals?"
I originally thought that this was just another basic discussion question, asking Gao Wen to predict who would win the championship. After entering the quarterfinals, it was basically the level of an official question. But I didn't expect that the questioning was not over yet and there was a twist.
"If Roger beats Novak in the final, it means that the world ranking gap between you and Novak will be reduced to 700 points. In the following North American hard court season, the world No. 1 may change places. Even a 500-point tournament may overturn the world ranking."
"Are you aware of that?"
Not only glory and success, but also an ultimate goal lies before Gawain——
No. 1 in the world.
For any professional player, being number one in the world is a lifelong goal, but in the long history, only 25 players have reached this position, which is even rarer than a Grand Slam champion.
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After all, a Grand Slam champion requires a strong performance within two weeks, from Wawrinka to Murray to Gao Wen, they have all done it; but the world number one needs outstanding and stable performance over a long period of several months or even a year, so as to reach the top surrounded by giants.
As of 2015, Murray among the Big Four has not yet been able to achieve such an achievement.
In fact, Murray, Wawrinka and Gao Wen are very similar. They have two Grand Slam titles, have been ranked in the top five in the world for a long time, and have not yet topped the world No. 1 list. The important reason that distinguishes Murray from the latter two is that he has maintained a high level for a longer period of time and is far ahead in the number of Masters titles.
However! Now, Gawain is one step ahead of Murray and has the hope of competing with Djokovic for the world's No. 1 spot!
No wonder the reporters could no longer contain their excitement.
It is truly amazing that Gawain, who is only 19 years old, was able to remain rational and calm in such a situation.
A month ago, when Roland Garros ended, with Corvina being eliminated in the semi-finals, the points gap between him and Djokovic exceeded 2,200 points. This also meant that the battle for the "world's number one" title was temporarily suspended in the grass court season, and Corvina failed to seize the opportunity to overtake in the clay court season.
In other words, the results of the Wimbledon competition cannot affect the world's number one ranking.
Even in the most extreme case, where Gawain wins the championship and Djokovic is eliminated in the first round, Gawain's points are still not enough to become the world's number one.
Coincidentally, under the topic of "the Big Four guarding the back garden", the heat of the battle for the world's number one was temporarily put on hold.
Unexpected!
Gao Wen actually made it all the way to the semi-finals, and the whole situation suddenly changed again.
As the reporter said, if Federer defeated Djokovic to win the final, the points gap between Djokovic and Gavin would be shortened to within 700%, and the situation would be completely different.
In the upcoming North American hard court season, the US Open series will undoubtedly become a major event. Before the US Open kicks off, Gao Wen still has a full six weeks of opportunities to improve his points.
Who knows, maybe there will be a surprise top seed at this year's US Open?
(End of this chapter)