Chapter 2001: The Mystery of Connection
Fast, everything happened too fast——
It wasn't the speed or rhythm of the ball, but the progress of the game. Before he could blink, three consecutive game points of Wawrinka disappeared without a trace, and then... the break point appeared.
What...what happened?
In the opening stage, Gao Wen was indeed in full swing in terms of tactical layout, rhythm control, and batting feel. Whether actively or passively, he was always able to make the best batting choices and firmly grasp the situation.
"40:AD".
Wawrinka is in danger, and it is the second consecutive service game after the opening.
The audience who had not yet fully entered the game state were also a little dazed. They were looking forward to an exciting clash but did not expect the excitement to happen so soon!
Break point.
The audience's hearts were beating wildly, but the court seemed particularly calm.
District 2.
Wawrinka served.
Outside corner.
With a classic routine of 199 kilometers per hour, Wawrinka found a serve at the critical moment, with speed, power and landing spot, and the tennis ball rolled up a wave of air and swept across the entire court.
Gao Wen barely got to the position and barely touched the ball. He could only react passively. There was no time and space to react, and he barely managed to generate a topspin on his backhand.
However, the two-handed backhand swing was incomplete and could not be fully opened, the topspin was obviously insufficient, and the line and landing point did not meet expectations.
Not bad.
The opportunity came to Wawrinka.
Having established an advantage through serving, Wawrinka followed up with the second shot without hesitation, and there was no need to switch to forehand, but to attack directly with backhand.
Stretch, open, exert force——
Wawrinka's one-handed backhand was elegant and violent, with the two contradictory qualities of elegance and power perfectly blended together. It instantly opened up the entire court on the diagonal line and bombarded it like a heavy artillery.
Gawain responded in a panic.
Even though Gawain's footsteps were at the backhand position and he didn't need to cross the court, Wawrinka tore the diagonal line apart, so that Gawain's footsteps were completely pulled out of the singles line, and he had to extend his upper body to barely touch the ball.
However! In the difficult situation, Gawain also showed his master's temperament, and he remained calm in the face of danger. Although he was embarrassed, he was not surprised. He was mentally prepared for Wawrinka's backhand ability, and he had already completed the idea when he took a step.
Backhand, cutting.
And again and again cutting.
Gao Wen did not choose to force an attack, but instead used a cut to overturn the rhythm.
Backhand, straight line.
The route is what Gao Wen is most familiar with and best at, but the way of hitting the ball is different.
The tennis ball swayed from the outside of the pole into the court, cut into the court like a banana ball, and landed in the large triangle at the baseline in a straight line.
Light, clever, and stunning.
This is not the first time that Gao Wen has hit such a line, but every time he hits it, he always wins applause, and today is no exception.
There was an exclamation at the O2 Arena.
All eyes turned to the other side.
Wawrinka was running across the court at full speed. Despite his fast speed, defense was not his strong point. He did not change his position and posture while running defensively, and it was obvious that this was an offensive posture.
This is indeed the case.
Get in place, push off the ground, roll up the belt, pull up, sweep across——
The forehand stroke was done in one go.
Facing Gawain's backspin slice, Wawrinka used a forehand lift and pull to roll the racket, but the speed of the racket head was obviously accelerated, with an outward force to increase the downward tail force, and the tennis ball flew along the diagonal line.
At this time, it can be seen that Wawrinka's footsteps and body are very awkward. The detailed adjustments between defense and offense are still not smooth enough, and his center of gravity is obviously unable to be pulled back.
Of course, as long as Wawrinka's attack quality is high enough and the pressure is strong enough, this slight deviation in details can be smoothed out and adjusted quickly.
Obviously, Wawrinka realized Gawain's tactical intention and slowed down the pace by cutting to complete the adjustment. The next step was to turn defense into offense. In order to limit Gawain, even though his body movements were not in place, Wawrinka still chose to force the attack and continued to improve the quality of his forehand attack.
However, for top players, this fleeting deviation in details may become a gap in their counterattack. The key lies in whether the opponent can "catch up" with this gap through prediction, movement, and adjustment.
After all, tennis is all about timing.
Therefore, the focus is still on the game——
Wawrinka is increasing the tempo and speed, compressing the space for Gao Wen to switch from defense to offense; Gao Wen is making plans, trying to cut into the gap in Wawrinka's offense-defense transition.
Both players stuck to their own tactics and completed their layout through hitting the ball. The back-and-forth contest hid the edge in every corner.
The entire audience's attention followed Wawrinka's forehand diagonal transfer flight, across the net, and looked to the other side.
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Gao Wen was moving quickly across the court. He cut the ball on the previous shot to buy himself some space to adjust. He pulled his center of gravity back and sprinted at full speed. In a flash, he had arrived and appeared on the trajectory of the incoming ball.
With one step and one push, the right leg brakes urgently to control the body, and the impact of the reaction force surges along the calf, and finally the push is completed through the turning action; in the same predicament and similar situation, Gawain and Wawrinka both choose to fight back head-on and not give an inch, but the methods are slightly different.
Make an effort?
That’s right, you do exert force, but it’s not a flat strike, but a strong topspin, the “Nasus forehand”.
Hit the ball, pull up, go around the head, and hit the ball.
The entire hitting action shows an obvious topspin trajectory, the power is released instantly, and the push is completed by relying on the strong friction between the racket string and the tennis ball.
Bang! From the sound of the ball hitting the ball, one can feel the power of this shot bursting out. The mustard yellow light and shadow returned to Wawrinka's forehand position along the diagonal line like a hurricane, but the pulling and collision of the whole tail force rose to a whole level, and the rhythm and intensity of the shock wave were suffocating.
But see——
Wawrinka, who was about to return to midfield defense, pulled back again. The barely visible misalignment in the transition between offense and defense shifted a little, just like gears shifting one by one.
But this time, Wawrinka was not passive.
He swept the ball with his forehand and rushed forward without hesitation.
"Power vs. Power".
"Forehand VS Forehand".
Wawrinka was not afraid at all, but he also realized that his forehand had not felt good in the past two months and could not handle the spin, so he subconsciously hit his forehand harder, trying to suppress the spin through force.
Ah! Wawrinka is on fire.
Ahhh! Forehand, sweep, impact.
Following the force of the swing, Wawrinka's body was pulled outward by the centrifugal force. He paused with his right leg to control the inertia and swung the racket completely out, completing the shot. The tennis ball was almost blown up.
Bang! It was violent, powerful, and fierce.
This is Wawrinka! Laymen watch the excitement, experts see the doorway——
To the outsider, Wawrinka continued to output, one shot after another, launching continuous forehand attacks, and facing break points, he dared to shoot and attack.
For insiders, they can immediately notice Gawain's counterattack. Starting from the passivity and embarrassment of receiving the serve, the balance of the confrontation has gradually been restored. Wawrinka's continued strength is precisely because he feels Gawain's counterattack. He has no way out and can only continue to be strong and keep pressuring.
On the break point, the situation was very tense and delicate, and both players were improving.
(End of this chapter)