Chapter 330: First Match Point
Whoosh!
Outside corner of the second zone, suppressing Isner's backhand.
Isner was a little surprised, because Gawain's tactic of suppressing the forehand was very obvious today, especially in the second and third sets, throughout the whole process, but at the most critical moment, Gawain suppressed the backhand again?
Despite the surprise, Isner's reaction was very quick and his second serve was slow, so it was not difficult for Isner.
Push off the ground! Lead the racket! Move sideways!
Swing! Turn! Push! Isner's backhand return is very smooth, but!
At the moment of contact, Isner realized that Gawain's serve was actually weaker! He! Actually! Was weaker! Everyone wants to serve as hard as possible, but Gawain did the opposite and weaker?
In today's game, Gawain used the same tactics several times, but Isner never found a good solution, mainly because it was too sudden. The changes in speed and rhythm made Isner very uncomfortable.
To outsiders, it seems like a soft serve that can be hit with just a direct hit. But to the player involved, the action of preparing to exert force has been prepared, but the ball does not come yet, and the tennis ball stays in the air as if it will not move forward. Moreover, the contact between the racket and the tennis ball feels different, which is extremely awkward.
"ah!"
Isner used his full strength to hit the ball with his two-handed backhand, but the bounce height and flight speed of the ball were far from his expectations. Isner should have adjusted slightly before hitting the ball, but he wanted to exert too much force and was too impatient, so he was unable to pull up the entire swing trajectory and was unable to lower his body's center of gravity.
Bang.
The tennis ball swept directly towards the net, hit it dully, then slowly slid down and rolled back to Isner's court.
"oh……"
The audience held their heads in disbelief. They had never expected Isner to miss the chance to attack with a second serve, allowing Gawain to steal a second serve and win. Isner missed such an easy and simple shot, and then pushed himself to the edge of the cliff:
Match point.
The first match point of the game appeared.
"6:4".
Isner himself couldn't believe it. He put the racket on his head and pulled the two ends of the racket down with his left and right hands. He looked at the tennis ball rolling back with a depressed look on his face. Then he drooped his shoulders and looked up at the sky, expressing his serious dissatisfaction with his own haste, as if he was asking the sky:
What 's wrong with me?
Hu Litao's exclamation had just come out of his mouth when he saw Isner's return ball go into the net. His heart, which had been hanging in the air, slammed back into his chest.
Zhan Jun also explained immediately.
"The interruption on the court just now had an impact on both players. Gawain's serve was noticeably less powerful, and Isner's swing was noticeably more impatient. Both players were affected to varying degrees."
"But judging from the result, Gawain still managed to hold his ground, using the strategy of reducing the power of his serve to force Isner's weaker backhand to make mistakes."
"Match point, the first match point of the entire match has appeared. Gao Wen is one point away from making history and becoming the first Chinese male player to win a Grand Slam match."
The footsteps of history are already echoing in my ears.
Roar, roar, roar! Ahhhh! Aaaaa! The whole stadium roared again, and the cheers for Isner reached their peak at this moment. The roar of the entire stadium was stirring, and the surface of the skin could clearly feel the burning and rolling heat wave.
Even if Gao Wen wanted to ignore the score, it was difficult to do so. After his concentration was interrupted again, he noticed the scoreboard. Even if his mentality was calm, he couldn't help but get excited. Was he really going to win? Could it be...
But just as his thoughts began to flow, Gao Wen turned his back to the court, took a few deep breaths, and regained his focus. He forgot about match points, victory, and history, and just focused on the next point, starting with the serve.
It wasn't easy. The noise at Arthur Ashe Stadium was something Gao Wen had never experienced before. Everything was unfamiliar.
Grand Slams, center courts, and global live broadcasts are difficult because there are too many uncertainties on and off the court, which come in like a tide.
Moreover, it happened just fifteen seconds ago and it happened again now, continuously interfering with the game.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
The game was interrupted again, and while waiting for the noise and bustle to finally die down, the sound of the wind became particularly clear, as if the sun was burning.
Snap. Snap. Snap.
Gao Wen started to hit the ball, and his thoughts began to surge again. His breathing became unstable, which might affect his serve.
Gawain did not let his thoughts run wild. Instead, he stopped playing the ball, laughed, and gestured to Isner on the other side of the court to apologize: he was not ready yet.
It is more realistic than tense. Gawain can clearly feel the power of his heartbeat. Even if he lives again, some things are inevitable. But this reality makes Gawain feel the warmth and power of life as never before.
He loves moments like this.
call……
After taking a long breath, Gao Wen calmed down and prepared himself again.
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Snap. Snap. Snap.
Push off the ground! Bend your knees! Toss the ball! Turn your body! The entire serve movement is continuous and done in one go, and the tennis ball flies out to the outside corner.
Forehand.
As soon as the tennis ball was hit, Gao Wen realized that something was wrong. He was still a little nervous at the critical moment and the speed of the ball was not fast enough, which might become an offensive opportunity for Isner.
This was the second time in a row. If the last second serve was intentional, then this time the first serve was really a case of tight control.
However, facing the match point, Gawain was nervous, and so was Isner.
Facing a significantly slower first serve, clocked at just 99 mph (160 km/h), Isner instead sliced conservatively with his forehand.
On the one hand, physical strength was indeed a problem at the end of the fourth set; on the other hand, Isner did not expect Gawain's ball speed to slow down completely, and considering that his last second serve did not cross the net despite his own strength, Isner added a lot of insurance this time.
Slice the ball back.
The tennis ball flew over slowly and returned to Gao Wen's position. He only needed to adjust his feet slightly to hit the ball directly with his forehand.
However, Isner's slice return was very deep and accidentally added spin, which subtly squeezed Gawain's forehand swing.
Gao Wen chose to attack the first straight line with his forehand, but he was a little cautious. He did not increase the speed and angle, and also pressed the landing point deep, almost near the baseline, and then suppressed Isner's backhand through rotation.
really!
Isner's backhand is very difficult to attack, basically it is just a top shot or a slice shot, lacking variety. In addition, the suppression effect of the landing point makes him appear cautious, and he pushes another shot back to the middle.
Coincidentally, both players slowed down their ball speeds, which in turn made the tense and anxious atmosphere in the air gradually tense up.
Third update.
(End of this chapter)