Chapter 1973 Training Quality
On the stage of the US Open final, Gao Wen truly felt the limit for the first time. The ceiling, the restraint, the oppression, were clearer than ever before, even more real than the bottleneck where the growth potential value stopped rising.
However, Gao Wen broke through himself and his limits. Without relying on the help of the system, he made steady progress from quantitative change to qualitative change, and truly touched the charm of competitive sports at another level.
He, eager to train——
Because he knows that he still has potential waiting to be tapped, and because he knows that he still has room to grow.
Those simple and boring trainings become interesting in the joy and freedom of sweating.
Focus, commitment, immersion.
For the young player who just joined the UCLA Bruins in September this year, this is a shocking education that is more impactful than any words.
Four days ago, Gao Wen stood on the biggest stage in the world to save match point and beat the world No. 1 to break the curse and defend his Grand Slam title; four days later, the same person stood on the court where they practiced every day and honestly carried out basic training.
Actions are always more effective than words.
Even without McDonald's reminder, the Bruins players began to train obediently. Then the legend of Gawain in the Bruins became popular again, and then...
Leaked the news.
One person tells ten people, ten people tell a hundred people.
Before they had time to catch their breath, the rumor had already spread outside the UCLA Westwood campus, and people began flocking to the campus in groups of three or four, like a tide.
Training can be just as exciting.
In the four Grand Slams, tickets are also sold for daily training. Spectators can buy tickets to watch the training matches of top players. They can also gather outside the barbed wire to watch for free, and it always attracts a large number of spectators.
The same is true today.
Soon, the audience seats were filled, and those who arrived a little later were reluctant to leave, so they stood outside the wire fence and watched reluctantly.
——There were so many people! However, the players on the court were not affected at all, and they were very focused and engaged.
"...Wow, who was that guy fighting against Gawain? His forehand and backhand moves were too violent."
“Tim.”
"who?"
"Dominic Thiem, a good friend of Gawain, plus Grigoriy Dimitrov and Milos Raonic, these young people all hang out together."
"This forehand, the power is not held back at all, hit with full force and hit hard."
"Dominic's signature weapon is his backhand..."
The "top of the hill" behind the spectator stands was also crowded with people. UCLA's Westwood campus is built on a small hill. Although the slope is not high, one still needs to go up and down within the campus.
The training ground in front of us is like this. The north and east sides of the stadium are surrounded by small hills. On the east side is a busy road, and on the west side is green trees. You can overlook the stadium when you come and go.
Today, the place is also full of people, looking down from above.
Inside the training ground, one could clearly feel the tension of the collision of forces, so much so that one had to hold their breath and stare, but the tension outside was slightly weaker, and passers-by and spectators could not hold back their curiosity.
However, before he could continue his words, Tim's backhand exploded -
Bang! His right hand was fully extended, like a roc spreading its wings, and the force was like a bomb. One could even clearly hear the sound of the ball hitting the ball, which was more violent than Wawrinka's.
The air is rolling.
In an instant, the whole audience held their breath, including the onlookers on the hillside.
straight line.
Blind spot.
Even though Gawain had predicted it and rushed over at full speed, he lacked the space to swing his forehand, and relying solely on upper body strength, he could not withstand Thiem's force, so his forehand hit missed the racket and flew directly into the audience stands .
Roar! The whole audience was in uproar.
They had just witnessed Gao Wen's amazing performance in the US Open final, and now an "unknown" Thiem was able to play such a wonderful shot. The impact was really overwhelming.
Is Tim really that unknown?
Not necessarily.
According to the latest world rankings, Thiem ranks 21st, only one step away from the top 20 in the world, and is also a master.
But the past two months have been more disappointing than joyful for Tim.
After being unexpectedly eliminated in the second round of Wimbledon, Thiem was a little frustrated. In the following Davis Cup, he represented Austria but lost two singles matches in a row to the Netherlands, and his confidence fell to the bottom.
Thiem is not a player who is always sad and depressed. Frustration and loss are real, but he will not hide in the house and wipe away his tears. Instead, he will step onto the court and regain his form through the game. He still longs for a real showdown.
Before the North American summer hard court season kicked off, Thiem had already taken the lead on the European clay courts to continue honing and improving on the surface that he is most familiar with and best at.
Facts have also proved that this strategy is wise.
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A streak of ten consecutive wins, in which he defeated opponents including Monfils, Lajovic, Busta, Lopez, Goffin and other top 20 players in the world, and won two 250-point tournaments. Finally, he was eliminated in the semi-finals in Kitzbühel, Austria, ending his winning streak.
finally!
Thiem has finally regained some form and confidence, and is heading into the North American summer hard court season with great anticipation.
Last year, Thiem first came into the public eye with his outstanding performance in the fourth round of the US Open, allowing people to see the rise of this single-handed star.
This year, Thiem, like Gao Wen, also has points to protect and needs to prove himself, embarking on the North American summer hard court season journey amid expectations and pressure.
However……
Toronto was eliminated in the first round.
Cincinnati, eliminated in the first round.
From winning streaks to losing streaks, from clay to hard courts, from heaven to hell, Thiem seems to be lost again. How to maintain his mentality amid attention and pressure, and how to stay firm in the direction amid the growing pains and twists and turns, is still a difficult task for every young player.
New York was eliminated in the third round, losing to Anderson.
Of course, judging from the results, the fourth round last year and the third round this year did not seem that bad, but for Thiem, it was disappointing.
He has more expectations for himself.
So, after the US Open, Thiem took the initiative to ask about Gao Wen's training plan. He also wanted to go to UCLA to train for a while to get a feel for the fast hard court.
After all, the next five months will basically be all fast and hard courts.
Gawain welcomed him with open arms.
In Gao Wen's opinion, Thiem already possesses top-level strength and will have no problem getting into the top ten in the world, but he still has to overcome the shackles of his mentality.
One detail is very direct. Thiem was 100% committed in the training match. The overall quality of the ball was very, very good, including the clear selection of the line and the landing point. He is the typical one-track player who is unstoppable once he gets into the state. However, in official competitions, he can often only exert 70% or even 50% of his strength in the training match.
Attitude is the key.
Therefore, Gawain was not surprised at all by the quality of Tim's backhand straight line just now. Not only was he not surprised, Gawain also took the initiative to applaud Tim to express his affirmation.
Tim, you are on the right track.
(End of this chapter)