When he was young, Djokovic retired from competitions frequently, and would leave the field due to minor injuries. He also lost many games in a confused and chaotic manner, causing many controversies about passive play. He has never been a representative of strong-willed players, and this seems to have become a stereotype.

When people talk about determined warriors, the players that come to mind are Nadal, Gawain, or even Wawrinka or Thiem, but very few people would associate Djokovic with such an image.

However, this does not mean that Djokovic is weak.

In fact, the king will never give up easily——

In the 2012 Australian Open final, Djokovic faced Nadal; in the 2019 Wimbledon final, Djokovic faced Federer.

In these two finals, post-match statistics showed that Djokovic was completely at a disadvantage and performed far worse than his opponents; however, it was Djokovic who had the last laugh.

This is tennis.

Unlike a 100-meter race, tennis is not a game where whoever has the best or superior statistics can win. The real core lies in key points.

This is also Djokovic's strength.

One bag and one wrap, entangled and stuck.

Time and again at crucial moments, Djokovic is able to use his accurate prediction, hitting feel, and unique wrap-around hitting ability to tightly grasp the situation, either dragging down his opponent or finding opportunities for himself and finally cashing in on the points, even if his opponent is Federer or Nadal.

When Djokovic is in a state of mission accomplishment, when Djokovic stands on the edge of the cliff, everything will be different.

In fact, the game in front of us is indeed different from the one in Melbourne Park at the beginning of this year.

First of all, in today's match, Djokovic really faced up to Gawain's position, and his mentality and position changed fundamentally.

Secondly, at this moment, Djokovic has indeed been pushed into a desperate situation. At the Australian Open at the beginning of the year, Djokovic was the one who held the leading advantage, but now, after being broken in the fourth set, Djokovic is already shaky and has hit rock bottom.

"Leading the ball" and "falling behind the ball" are two different things.

So, Djokovic burned up and truly entered Super Saiyan mode.

Pocket. Wrap. Wrap. Top.

Djokovic just didn't drop the ball and kept dragging out the rounds. The whole game entered the classic "Novak mode", with the rounds lasting at least twenty rounds.

Looking back at the semi-final between Gawain and Federer, the scores that were resolved within three shots accounted for the largest proportion, and the scores that ended the round within nine shots could already be called a "round tug-of-war". After all, this is the US Open, a fast hard court. In terms of speed alone, it is faster than Wimbledon.

Now, ten-beat rallies are common, twenty-beat rallies are easy, and thirty-beat rallies are not uncommon. This is typical Djokovic.

Is the game interesting?

Of course, it still looks good, but it is not as exciting as imagined, because as the rounds are prolonged, it turns into a war of attrition, the number of transition balls increases sharply, and there are many invalid hits. The feeling is like stepping into mud, sticky and entangled endlessly.

So, what about Gawain?

Referring to previous matches against Djokovic, Gawain’s ability to break stalemates and deadlocks is precisely the key to his lead in head-to-head record.

If it is the first or second set, facing such a situation, Gao Wen will often speed up or exert force to break free from the restraints, change the rhythm and get out of the quagmire trap.

But now it is the fourth set, and the second physical limit has appeared. The physical strength required to launch the first attack and break the deadlock is obviously not enough. After a short breath, Djokovic dragged him into his familiar rhythm, and the difficulty of the game rose to a new level.

And don’t forget—

Even when facing the other Big Three, Djokovic can still hold on to the situation. This is the rhythm of the game that he likes, is familiar with and is best at.

After being broken in the fourth set and falling behind 2:4, Djokovic has been in a state of being a ball-scoring machine without any sadness or joy.

The Djokovic in front of us is indeed an alien from another level, and his unparalleled baseline hitting ability is fully demonstrated.

First hold serve, then break serve - a service game that lasted for seven minutes, and Djokovic cashed in the third break point in a 23-shot round.

He held serve again and broke serve again - Gao Wen didn't even see the game point, and saving three break points was of no avail, as he was broken again.

After winning four games in a row, Djokovic came back to life and won the fourth set with "6:4", tying the score. The final is about to enter the deciding set.

Continue to hold serve, continue to break serve - Djokovic has completely controlled the game, and Gao Wen made a fatal double fault on the second break point.

Then, after saving two break points, Djokovic held his serve again. His confidence and belief on the key points were already unstoppable.

“3:0”.

In the deciding set, Djokovic, who served first, instantly opened up the score and was far ahead. The balance of victory and defeat had completely tilted towards the world number one.

Shock! Shock! Since the seventh game of the fourth set, Djokovic has won seven games in a row, proving his ability with unparalleled performance.

He does not need a violent forehand like Del Potro, nor a graceful backhand like Wawrinka. Even if he cannot hit a Federer-style winning point on the offensive end, nor a Nadal-style winning point on the defensive end, he can still control the game.

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This is Djokovic.

Arthur Ashe Stadium has lost its ability to respond.

In today's final, in the first set, Gao Wen won five games in a row and led all the way. After resisting Djokovic's first counterattack, he was about to win the game in four sets. He was only two games away from the championship throne.

However, Djokovic displayed the kingly demeanor of the world's number one, launching a wave of attacks to win seven consecutive games, not only reversing the downward trend, but also becoming the leader for the first time in this fierce marathon showdown. He ran and sprinted all the way and firmly grasped the initiative in the deciding set.

The game entered another level, a level that can only be felt in the Big Four games.

and!

This is still not the end.

——“30:40”.

It was another 18-beat round, and Gao Wen hit the ball into the net with his forehand, giving away another break point.

With trembling steps, he had reached the edge of the cliff, but he slipped down before he could stand firmly and had to hang on the cliff with his hands.

further into crisis.

Desperate situation, desperate situation, desperate situation, worse than Melbourne Park.

If he was broken again, it would be "0:4". If he was two breaks behind in the deciding set, the final might have ended early.

At that time in Melbourne Park, the desperate situation in the third set was indeed difficult, but at least there was still time, space, and physical strength.

And now?

The score was even more difficult; we lost control of the game even when we were leading, and to make matters worse, our physical strength had really reached its limit.