Chapter 588: Step by Step

"Oh."

When Tobias told Gawain that Kojkinakis was eliminated, this was Gawain's only reaction, and then he told Tim to continue training.

Originally, Tobias was worried that the off-field disputes might distract Gawain. After all, Gawain's condition had been average in the recent period, and it was more difficult for him to concentrate than before.

As an agent, he had to deal with the public relations crisis and manage the relationship with the ATP as soon as possible; but at this time, seeing that Gao Wen's attention was completely on the singles court, it seemed that he was finally getting back on track little by little, which made his heart, which had been hanging in the air, slowly return to his chest.

As Tobias judged, Gawain is regaining his rhythm and form step by step, which can be seen from the first round of the game.

As the 13th seed, Gao Wen's first-round opponent is Pablo-Andujar of Spain, currently ranked 43rd in the world.

In fact, the draw is a bit tough, as Andujar is even ranked two places higher than Thiem in the world.

Spain has always been a strong tennis player. There was Moya in the past and Nadal in the future. In addition, there are a large number of excellent players in the top 100 in the world. In the Davis Cup, a world tennis team competition for countries, Spain has always been a strong country.

In the Open Era, Spain ranked second only to the United States in the number of championships, with seven wins, all of which came after 2000. It is the undisputed number one championship power after the millennium.

The Davis Cup, like the NCAA, tests the overall strength of a team, with both singles and doubles events taking place together to showcase the country’s heritage across the entire program.

However, Anduar does not stand out among the many famous Spanish players. Since he turned professional in 2007, his best result in the Grand Slams has been the second round. Moreover, his performance in the four Grand Slams this year was the second round of the Australian Open and the US Open, and he was eliminated in the first round of the French Open and Wimbledon.

Looking back at Anduyal's entire career, in the second round of the 2021 Geneva Open in the distant future, he defeated Federer in three sets; and in the first round of the French Open that followed, he upset Thiem in five sets. These two games were major milestone victories that caused seismic reactions around the world.

Even Andujar himself said, "I will tell my children that Dad once defeated Federer. This is the proudest moment of my entire career."

It can be seen from the side that Anduar's career has indeed been lacking in highlight moments.

However, it would be a mistake to underestimate Anduar. In his career, he has defeated a series of masters, including Isner, Dimitrov, Berdych, Ferrer, Kei Nishikori, Robredo, Simon, Verdasco, etc. No one can underestimate him.

Last year, Andujar made it to the semi-finals of the Madrid Masters despite having a wild card; this year, Andujar won his third championship trophy in Switzerland.

It can be seen that Anduar is in the best period of his career and is showing a slowly rising trend. He is an opponent that needs to be vigilant in the first round.

In the first round against Andujar, Gao Wen was fully prepared.

Anduar is a typical clay court player. His defense is very solid and his offense is mainly based on rotation and placement. Although he lacks a little explosive power, he is very tenacious.

When playing against Andujar on a fast and hard court like the Shanghai Masters, you must first be patient, then attack decisively, and play in rhythm.

Gao Wen did exactly that.

At the beginning of the game, Gao Wen's entire offensive rhythm was very tight and agile. The tactical intention of adapting to the venue and adjusting the state through doubles matches was well implemented, so Gao Wen entered the state very quickly.

On the one hand, Gao Wen connected his attack by grabbing the rising point, interspersed between regular shots, and disrupted the rhythm of the batting attack.

On the other hand, Gawain consciously controlled the length and rotation of the landing point to change the rhythm of the ball. This was the experience he learned from the game against Nadal. It is not necessary to hit the tennis ball into the deep area every time, but to disrupt the opponent's hitting feeling by changing the depth of the landing point combined with the change of rotation.

Especially when Gao Wen is still slowly finding his batting feel, he does not need to take risks in challenging the corners, but can control the situation through layout. This way of batting can often accumulate more advantages and reduce the risk of Gao Wen's final winning shot.

The most direct and obvious data is the significant decrease in unforced errors.

Last week at the Imperial Capital Open, Gao Wen's own unforced errors remained high, which was the most direct reflection of his poor form; but this week it was effectively controlled, and it can still be seen that the systematic training over the weekend played a role.

Of course, time is still short, and the form and feel will not magically return overnight, so Gawain still needs to remain patient when facing Andujar.

At the beginning of the game, he broke Andujar's serve before he could gain a foothold, and then broke Andujar's serve for the second time in the middle of the game. In the end, the score of the first set was fixed at "6:2".

Judging from the score, the gap was huge, but the game lasted a full 43 minutes. On a fast hard court, this could be considered a fierce battle. It can be seen from the side that the competition between the two sides was very fierce.

The trend of the second set also proved this point.

At the beginning of the game, Andujar took advantage of Gao Wen's declining physical strength and broke the serve first. He then played steadily and maintained the advantage in his own service games. He did not give away any break points in the first three service games. The advantage was very obvious and the situation was moving towards the deciding set.

But at the end of the set, after Gawain had overcome his low physical strength, he seized on Andujar's mental fluctuations and launched a fierce attack.

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He first broke Andujar's fourth serve, and then held his serve strongly to stabilize the situation, bringing both sides back to the same starting line.

Then the two sides entered a stable situation of mutual serve holding, and the second set was heading towards a tiebreak, but Gao Wen keenly grasped Andujar's slightly conservative mentality, instantly speeding up, saving two game points, and successfully breaking the serve for the second time on the third break point with his signature backhand straight line.

This also once again demonstrated Gao Wen's keen ability to interpret the game.

In the closing stage, Gao Wen withstood the test of two non-consecutive break points, extinguished Andujar's final counterattack, and seized the second match point opportunity to successfully realize the victory.

The game ended with the final scores of "6:2" and "7:5".

Although there were some twists and turns in the process, and the match lasted a full 100 minutes and was visibly intense, Gao Wen still got back on the right track little by little, steadily adding another victory and advancing to the second round.

At the same time, Thiem defeated Rosol in straight sets with scores of "6:3" and "6:4" on Court No. 4, advancing to the first round and winning the opportunity to challenge Djokovic for the first time in his career.

The doubles partner of Gao Wen and Tim fought on two fronts and won the first victory!

(End of this chapter)