Chapter 579: Newbie Error
"15:40".
Two consecutive break points and set points.
In the first zone, it was still Lindstedt's serve, but this time it was Gao Wen who was standing at the baseline on the other side of the net ready to receive the serve, and the positions of both sides also changed slightly.
Kubert stood in the serving area, facing Gawain; Thiem stood near the baseline, facing Lindsted.
If we switch to another angle, Lindstedt is standing at the baseline, Kubert is standing in front of the net; Gawain and Thiem are both standing near the baseline.
It can be seen from the small details that the Australian Open champion on the opposite side is a standard doubles player. When Lindstedt serves, Kubert is responsible for rushing to the net, relying on his physical coverage in front of the net to create visual pressure. As long as the quality of the return serve is slightly reduced, he can kill it directly.
Gao Wen and Thiem lacked confidence in their net skills. Although they would adjust their positions and put pressure on the net normally, such as in the previous point, at the critical moment, both players stood at the baseline because the baseline technique was the part they trusted the most. One could inadvertently see the awkwardness and nervousness of the two players.
On the court, Gawain and Thiem were communicating in low voices. Actually, for both of them, although they were a little awkward, they were not nervous at all. They were just focused. Moreover, because they had a partner in the doubles match, they could find someone to rely on in difficult moments and their mentality was more relaxed.
"I try to hit the ball as aggressively as possible towards Kubert and add topspin to force his return to be longer. You pay attention to Lindstedt's position."
"No problem, we can just zone left and right this time."
After a brief exchange, Gao Wen and Tim were ready.
Doubles matches require division of labor and cooperation. It is impossible to win the game by relying on one person to do everything. Therefore, before hitting the ball, partners often assign each other's roles. Positioning is also a part of it. Either stand in front or behind, or stand left or right. Then, focus on your own coverage area as much as possible, while paying attention to complementarity.
Gawain and Thiem still lack tacit understanding. It is not feasible to rely on telepathy to coordinate their shots, so they still need to express it through words.
Standing at the baseline at this time, the scene in Gawain's field of vision is completely different from that in a singles match: he can see a big Buddha right in front of him, and Kubert is 191 cm tall and stands close to him, which gives him a very oppressive feeling; but fortunately, the area on his left side of the court is covered by Thiem, which also means that Gawain's forehand and backhand coverage is reduced, and the defensive area changes accordingly.
Turn. Turn, turn, turn.
Gawain spun the racket in his hand quickly, leaning forward to look at Lindsted across the court, while at the same time, he did not forget Kubert in the corner of his eyes.
It's been more than 30 minutes, but I'm still not used to it and a little distracted.
Bang! Just then, Lindstedt served.
Outside corner!
Pushing off the ground, starting, moving sideways, Gao Wen's entire starting speed was a little slow, committing the most common and most frequent mistake among doubles novices, but Gao Wen did not indulge in the regret of missing the prediction. He took small steps to complete the adjustment and focused on the batting tactics they had communicated.
In this serve, Lindstedt obviously reduced his strength and added a lot of spin. His serve landed on the sideline and then quickly shot out of the court.
This tactic should be more effective in suppressing Thiem's one-handed backhand, but for Gawain, after experiencing Nadal's super topspin attack, now facing other players' backhand spin attacks, the whole response seems to be calm -
Especially since the match against Nadal was not long ago, the memory of the brain and muscles is still vivid.
A push! A lob!
Gao Wen's entire backhand swing was very tight and fast. He didn't do a full swing, but used the power of his body rotation to complete the intense friction. However, because his footsteps started a little slower, he had missed the opportunity to turn into a straight line, so Gao Wen added a lot of friction to hit the diagonal line.
Smash! It can be clearly seen that the parabola of the entire return serve is different. The flight trajectory is slightly higher. When it crosses the net, it is already above the shoulder. The height over the net is consciously raised.
In singles matches, the return speed is too slow, giving the opponent time to adjust his body center of gravity after completing the serve; but in doubles matches, more concern is placed on the players in front of the net.
really!
Kubert rushed to the net at the first possible moment and moved sideways with two big steps. However, he found that the flying height of the tennis ball exceeded his expectations and he could not complete the drive. However, the high-pressure ball was not high enough. The whole height was a bit ambiguous and it was stuck in mid-air, neither going up nor down.
He didn't have time to react a second time, and he jumped up on the spot, using the fadeaway shot method in basketball, with the racket going over his head and pressing down with his forehand. The strong topspin made it impossible for Kubert to control it, and he could only barely complete the shot. It was obvious that the entire swing and downward movement was not completed.
At the same time, Lindstedt quickly followed towards the net, and the two players formed a joint coverage in front of the net.
Bang! There was no way to control where the tennis ball landed. It landed in the service area on the side of Gawain and bounced high. Its speed and power were very average. However, due to Gawain's strong topspin, Kubert's return ball bounced high enough that when it flew to Gawain's position, it was already about two meters high.
Like pulling up an onion from a dry land! Gao Wen jumped up from the spot, used his forehand to cut the ball over his head, and quickly moved his wrist to increase the friction again. He pushed the ball with a little bit, sending out a graceful arc, and flew over slowly. In a flash, one could see the change in his hitting method.
Surprisingly!
It passed over Kubert's head, and judging from the parabolic trajectory, it should have landed accurately within the bounds. Without actively exerting force, Gawain's delicate control purely relying on his wrist was fully displayed. This is a shot that is rarely seen in singles matches.
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"Ugh!"
Kubert groaned, took two steps back, and intercepted the ball overhead with a fade away shot for the second time in a row. His whole body was like a fully drawn bowstring, relying on the strength of his waist and abdomen to force downward. But even so, the downward force was still lacking and it was obvious that he failed to hold down the ball.
Boom! The tennis ball is flying over here.
It was Gawain's side again! Even though he had lost his balance, Kubert still insisted on hitting the straight line and avoiding the diagonal line, so that Thiem, who was always moving his feet, had no room to play.
Although Thiem wanted very much to help Gao Wen, the most taboo thing in a doubles match is overlapping areas.
If Thiem goes to help but fails to score the winning point, the other half of the court will be completely empty. Once Thiem's return ball fails to create enough advantage, Kubert and Lindsted will definitely not miss it easily.
So Tim could only keep his body light and agile at all times and focus on the development of the game.
However, Kubert's choice of return route this time may not necessarily be considered wise.
Because, the spin attached to Gawain's forehand once again affected Kubert's return, barely completing the high pressure, but the landing point was in the deep area, right on the route of Gawain's lateral movement. Does this count as a direct hit on the muzzle? The fifth update.
(End of this chapter)