Chapter 2021 Marionette
Close to the backhand, strong topspin, and side spin, after landing, drill into the stance, further squeezing the swing space——
Murray's tactical intentions are very clear.
Squeeze. Contain. Control.
Although Murray did not pursue an ace or a direct serve, he regained control of the situation by changing the rhythm of his serve. Facing the dilemma of three consecutive break points, Murray established an advantage by changing his serve. Three consecutive first serves all entered the zone smoothly and established sufficient advantage.
This time is no exception.
But Murray had underestimated one thing: Gawain's vigilance.
With a keen sense of change in the game and an accurate grasp of the context of the game, Gao Wen had already noticed the changes even before a crisis occurred.
Therefore, before the situation got further out of control, Gawain took the lead in making changes.
Murray knew of Gawain's sharpness and intelligence, but he did not expect it to happen so quickly.
Or to put it another way, Murray is now too busy to take care of himself. He has just finally found some form, so naturally he has no time to take care of his opponent. Instead of paying attention to Gawain's changes, he still needs to focus on himself, so he ignores some details when making the layout.
It's inevitable.
Murray still focused on completing the layout through serving, while Gao Wen started to change his strategy from the serve.
This serve was indeed excellent, and Gawain's response was equally excellent.
The upper body is slightly tilted to the side, without forcing space, just a little bit to the side, keeping the center of gravity stable, and then cutting with the backhand.
The whole movement is smooth and flowing, one side, one cut, the steel becomes as soft as silk, relying on the forearm and wrist to complete the control, the ball is returned.
Middle road, straight line, shallow cut.
Surprisingly, Gao Wen did not choose to push deep, but instead cut a shallow ball, which landed slightly behind the baseline of the serving area, which was considered a half-court ball; from the cut to the landing point, Gao Wen's return serve instantly slowed down the entire rhythm of the round, giving a feeling of strolling in the garden.
Murray didn't expect it.
It can be seen from Murray's posture of opening his arms and preparing to attack with full force that he did not anticipate Gawain's return and the whole plan was overturned.
In a split second, Murray had already judged the situation -
If he stepped forward and cut into the baseline to hit the ball in the middle of the court at this time, it would be too late; if he continued to swing the racket in a full-fire forehand attack mode at this time, he would be too hasty, because the incoming ball was too slow and the landing point was too shallow, so he would need to wait, and as he waited, he would easily make mistakes in the hitting point.
Unless Murray can wait like Del Potro and then sweep the ball with his forehand unreasonably, such a return can be said to be exactly what he wants.
Unfortunately, Murray can't.
Gawain's return ball was a tit-for-tat response.
Murray expected that Gawain would not enter the baseline to attack this serve so he deliberately chose a slow ball; Gawain also expected that Murray would not serve and volley to compress the rhythm so he deliberately chose a cut on this return serve.
As they went back and forth, both of them were setting traps for each other and scheming against each other.
I have to say that Gawain’s response was outstanding.
Now it's Murray's turn.
In a flash, Murray had already come up with an idea -
There is no room for random thoughts. The more urgent, pressing and difficult the situation is, the more Murray can keep his mind clear and free of other distractions.
Sideways, forehand, high point slice, one shot backspin——
Murray also changed the way he gripped the racket, chopping it down like chopping wood, adding strong backspin and pursuing the landing point with delicate control of the touch.
Target: Gao Wen's forehand baseline triangle, mainly close to the sideline rather than the baseline.
The combination of backspin and side spin results in a limited height at which the return ball bounces. This shot is often used on grass courts because it can limit the opponent due to its low bounce. It is less effective on indoor hard courts, but it can still control the opponent's return range.
Because of the low bounce, the opponent has to pull the ball up when returning it, otherwise it will go into the net.
Therefore, the diagonal line is a high-probability event.
At the first moment, Murray moved towards the forehand position, staring at Gao Wen and the tennis ball intently.
really!
As soon as he saw Gawain's swing, Murray knew that his layout was successful and his prediction was accurate. He immediately accelerated his lateral movement and quickly caught up.
But wait…
It’s a diagonal line, it is indeed a diagonal line, but what about the quality of the ball?
Gao Wen, exert your strength.
Faced with a low-position shot with strong backspin, Gao Wen did not retreat nor was he conservative. He stepped into the ball in time, bent his knees to lower his center of gravity, and did not forget his batting habits from the grass season. He directly swept the ball with his forehand; and he either hit the ball with topspin or with a flat shot with a loop.
Hit! Rely on straightening the knees and lifting the arms to control the arc of the flight, but keep the force of the sweeping strike flat, and the whole rhythm will be instantly improved.
From slow to fast, without any warning.
According to Murray's layout, the diagonal line is one aspect and the topspin is another aspect, that is to say, this is still a slow round; but now, Murray predicted the first half but not the second half, the speed and power of the entire confrontation round increased instantly, and the intensity immediately changed.
Huh.
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Murray had no time to feel annoyed or stunned. He stared at the ball intently, accelerated his pace, and flicked it outwards with the centrifugal force.
A rush and a swing.
The centrifugal force pulls the tail force rapidly upward along with the swinging action, confronting the opponent head-on without giving in.
"Power vs. Power".
"Forehand VS Forehand".
Murray's forehand hit back without hesitation. The collision of power and strength ignited sparks, and the crisp sound of the ball exploded in the room.
Bang! The speed and power of the tennis ball increased to a new level, and it returned to Gao Wen's forehand position along the diagonal line like a heavy artillery, setting off a rolling heat wave.
The noise in the O2 Arena became even more violent, buzzing and buzzing, as if the whole space was boiling.
Before he could even blink, the mustard yellow light and shadow had already hit Gawain's hand head-on with tremendous force.
--boom.
However, the imagined roar did not happen.
Because Gawain cut again.
Variation, variation again! Facing Murray's powerful counterattack, Gao Wen chose to avoid the sharp edge. Instead of stubbornly colliding with the forehand position, he cut with the forehand.
Small ball?
No, long ball, push deep, use forehand slice, cut out a straight line, aim at Murray's backhand baseline big triangle flight, the center of the target is a blind spot.
The rhythm and tension were subverted again——
From slow to fast and then back to slow.
Murray was clearly the one serving, but the tempo was now completely controlled by Gawain.
It was precisely because Murray chose to slow down his serve to suppress and control the ball that Gao Wen took advantage of the situation and turned the disadvantage into an advantage in one fell swoop.
Murray did not expect this, and neither did the audience and the commentary booth. Then, Murray was led by the nose.
this……
Even though he saw it with his own eyes, he still doubted his eyes. Gawain's grasp of the battle situation and the rhythm were undoubtedly at the level of a giant.
Then, Murray crossed the court like a puppet, sprinting towards the backhand position, and his brain had to work quickly while moving at lightning speed.
What to do? (End of this chapter)