Directly in front of the net is Federer, who has unparalleled net skills among active players. As long as he stands in front of the net, the entire court will obediently submit to his racket.
Back then, from the 2004 season to the 2009 season, the reason why Nadal emerged as Federer's biggest rival was that in addition to his forehand-backhand suppression, his exquisite penetrating ability was also the key.
However, even when facing Nadal, Federer still dared to go to the net and went to the net aggressively. The mastery of net skills has always been an indispensable part of Federer's arsenal, and today was no exception.
However--
Gawain was not panicked.
To be precise, he was extremely calm and his eyes were sharp, as if he had already expected this.
The footsteps did not move back tactically, but continued to move parallel to a straight line. Because the hitting point was behind him, the two-handed backhand was switched to a one-handed backhand, and the body rotated counterclockwise and slightly sideways in the backhand direction.
Then, reach out and intercept.
The racket was right under his feet, slightly similar to the match point against Djokovic in the previous game, but the situation was completely different. This time Gao Wen was at the baseline, the whole space was different, and the handling was naturally different.
Backhand, while hitting the rebound, the body continues to rotate, making room while hitting the ball, and then the backhand position opens up a passage -
Straight path.
If Gao Wen chose to go diagonally, he could just hit the rebound ball directly; but Gao Wen used his footwork to adjust and make space, creating a straight line.
In just a short moment, with a slight flick of the wrist, the tennis ball completely changed its flight trajectory from an awkward position and flew quickly in a straight line.
Light. Agile. Graceful.
Not a slash, but a straight line.
The skill is stunning, indescribable, and it cuts off all thoughts in an unbelievable way.
Wow! The audience was completely overwhelmed. Before they could react to Federer's quick serve and volley, they saw Gawain, who was in trouble, hit a straight line that shocked everyone.
Then, amid the exclamations of the audience, Federer was already in a passive position.
Although Federer moved sharply and lightly, like a dancing butterfly, and moved to the right at the first moment, Gawain's straight shot overturned the prediction of the entire confrontation and won by surprise.
Federer, couldn't catch up.
He watched the tennis ball go straight across the court and into the empty space, scoring a winning point for Gawain.
"0:15".
It was still a close fight, still a contest of the first three shots, still a game of negotiation and counterattack, but this time it was Gawain who had the last laugh, getting the first point in Federer's serve.
Wow! There was thunderous applause.
It's really good! It's not the kind of tension and excitement of the duel at the net, but the countless possibilities behind each shot, the sudden inspiration and the wonderful. From Wimbledon to New York and back to London, the match between Gawain and Federer will not disappoint.
This is just the beginning.
Although he had just scored a stunning winning point, Gao Wen did not clench his fist to celebrate. It was still the beginning stage and everything was just a test. There was no need to be upset about losing points, and there was no need to celebrate about scoring.
But at least, Gawain sent a signal to Federer: the forward position for receiving the serve is not just a fancy move, Gawain is ready, this is a tactical layout, he can receive Federer's serve and make something of Federer's serve.
Invisibly, Gawain put pressure on Federer's serve in this way.
Federer, who is a veteran, saw it immediately. He was not panicking because there was no need to panic. He had experienced similar situations countless times.
Response, isn't it coming? "30:15".
A straight serve.
After serving, he hit a forehand straight line to score the winning point.
Like cutting melons and chopping vegetables, Federer regained the initiative in his own serve game, but the tension and pressure in this game were indeed slowly increasing. The relaxed state at the opening stage became a little bit tighter, and the atmosphere was naturally different.
Then, Federer sent a forehand error that went just wide of the line.
Out of bounds is not obvious and can be seen as additional damage caused by trying to improve the quality of the return ball during the back-and-forth contest. It is inevitable.
Federer was not upset and turned around to prepare for the next point to continue serving.
However, the score vaguely revealed the change of the situation.
"30:30".
Game point, or break point? Back to the first zone.
At this point, everyone is guessing: How will Federer serve? How will Gawain receive the serve? Will Federer serve an ace? Will Gawain choose to conservatively push the serve forward? All sorts of possibilities are swirling around.
Perhaps, Gawain was the only one who did not waver.
If you are testing, you must test to the end and it will not change because of the change in score, because in this game, Gao Wen’s goal is not to break the serve, but to test, to put pressure, to observe, and to lay the foundation for the overall situation.
Facing a serving master like Federer, the first step in receiving serve is to disrupt the continuity of Federer's serve. Otherwise, even if he gets three consecutive break points, he can easily turn the game around by serving five consecutive aces, so Gao needs to be patient and calm.
Of course, different scores and different conditions will naturally lead to different test contents.
The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!
Gao Wen was prepared to take a risk on this point, since there was no loss if he lost it.
The whole venue was completely silent, with all eyes focused on Federer.
He serves the ball.
Inner angle.
Surprisingly, inner corner.
In the first point of this game, Federer served an inside corner and served to volley, but Gawain scored. Now in a tie, Federer chose the inside corner again. Is this smart or paranoid? The answer is the former.
Gawain was ready to take a risk, and Federer saw it. Although they had not met that many times and Federer had not necessarily watched all of Gawain's games, Federer knew Gawain's style, his preparation for the game, and his focus on the overall situation. He would not stick to the immediate points. The speed of his brain's operation and his ability to plan were top-notch.
So, Federer knew that Gawain would take a risk, and he adjusted his tactics.
The inner angle is intentional.
At the same time, Federer actually reduced his strength and served the ball at a speed of 185 kilometers per hour. The cleverness of this serve could be felt from the sound of the ball hitting the ball.
Backspin, reduced force, inside angle.
triple.
So, when Gawain started, prepared to take risks, and began to attack, he found that he had shot too early. Not only did the tennis ball not fly over, but the hitting point was lower than he expected, almost below the waist.
In other words, if Gao Wen forced his strength, the ball would either go straight into the net or go out of the baseline with a spin.
Once Gawain gives up the attack, Federer will immediately follow up with the second shot.
It was the same serve from the first zone. Last time Gao Wen was able to use the force to push the ball in a straight line, but this time it was completely different. If he wasn't careful, the ball might have been finished during the serve reception.
This is Federer's serve ability.
While outsiders are surprised that Federer uses exactly the same tactics to step into the same river twice, insiders know that the same position in the same river is a completely different world.
This serve is full of traps.
The target was Gawain's mentality of trying to take risks.
So, what to do?