Chapter 724: I am the Master
The game started. In the first two rounds, Gao Wen and Nishikori played a total of nine points. The score ratio between the two was:
"8:1".
Moreover, the entire game process was very smooth. Less than four minutes after the two games ended, Gao Wen had already widened the gap between them like cutting melons and vegetables, without giving Kei Nishikori any chance to breathe.
What's going on?
Is Kei Nishikori really so vulnerable? Or is Gao Wen really so hot?
Of course not.
In fact, the most important thing is the difference in preparation and understanding of the game.
The incident happened suddenly and time was tight. Whether it was Gao Wen or Kei Nishikori, they were the same. They did not have enough time to study the game video and formulate tactics in depth. They had to re-formulate tactics against their opponents in just two or three hours.
The two teams and two players also showed different styles.
Kei Nishikori's tactics are still "self-centered" and "speed against speed". He tries his best to take the initiative and take the lead in attacking. He does not care even if the quality of the attack is relatively inferior. He uses rhythm to form a torrential suppression. In essence, there is no difference from the first two group matches.
But that is not the case with Gawain.
Gao Wen's tactics were to "build a layout around the opponent" and disrupt the rhythm as much as possible. Whether it was active attack or passive defense, disrupting Kei Nishikori's batting rhythm was the first goal, even if it meant Kei Nishikori might directly attack ruthlessly and even score.
Because Gao Wen knew that Kei Nishikori's active force lacked breakthrough and explosive power, making it difficult to become a conventional weapon.
You can say that.
In Kei Nishikori's eyes, Gawain is the Gawain of New York and Paris, but in the final analysis, his tactics were not adjusted according to Gawain.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with this idea. For all competitive sports, "self-centered" is the most correct and safest style. Only by sticking to yourself can you interpret the game in your own way and get closer to victory step by step.
The key is that Kei Nishikori is not a powerful cannon like Federer and Wawrinka. It is often difficult for him to be strong to the end if he relies on himself to control the game.
Kei Nishikori's confidence mainly comes from his straight-set win over Murray, but Gawain is not Murray.
In Gawain's eyes, Kei Nishikori is Kei Nishikori in London. Just as Kei Nishikori adjusts his tactics according to indoor hard courts, Gawain also adjusts his own playing style according to Kei Nishikori's tactics, revolving around Kei Nishikori's tactical system, and then breaking the balance of the game with his own style and method.
Focusing on Kei Nishikori does not mean abandoning your own style and being led by the nose. Instead, it means believing in your own ability to respond on the spot and interpret the game, and to adapt to the actual situation and the status of the players. After formulating a tactical framework, you can look for opportunities to break the balance of confrontation.
Gao Wen's confidence mainly comes from his own interpretation and control of the game, which can also be seen as another way of "putting myself first".
Then--
Kei Nishikori tried to play the game with himself as the main focus, but ran into a wall head-on; Gawain played the game around his opponent, but quietly took the initiative.
This is obviously not the usual routine.
So, what next?
surrender?
Obviously, this would not be the answer from the audience, nor would it be the answer from Kei Nishikori.
This life-and-death battle for the right to advance from the group has only started two games.
"40:30".
In Gao Wen's second service game of the whole match, Kei Nishikori finally found some touch and opened the game with two wonderful winning points.
In this game, Gao Wen always scored in the first zone, and then Kei Nishikori scored in the second zone. They chased each other and kept the score gap close.
Now, it’s District 2 again.
In the previous two duels in the second zone, Gao Wen chose to serve with his backhand at the outside corner and with his backhand at close range, but Kei Nishikori's backhand performance was very good.
So what about this time?
First serve, close range, backhand pressure.
In fact, this is not an obsession, but a test game between calculation and counter-calculation. Gao Wen still uses fast flat serve to squeeze Kei Nishikori's backhand.
Kei Nishikori really didn't expect this. He thought Gawain would switch to the forehand position no matter what, but Gawain pressed the backhand again.
Moreover, at a speed of 196 kilometers per hour, the entire flat serve was very well pressed, which did not leave Kei Nishikori much time to adjust.
One gives in, one bounces.
Kei Nishikori only had time to move half a step forward and barely managed to hit the ball near his waist with the racket. Although it was not a bounce, it was almost the same.
It was obvious that Kei Nishikori's body was completely squeezed, and after catching the ball, his body center of gravity moved a big step back.
However, the quality of the return was excellent—
Backhand.
Kei Nishikori's backhand is sometimes more threatening than his forehand. It's not because of his personal ability, but because his backhand action is relatively stable. He can maintain a stable rhythm even when continuously rushing for the rhythm on indoor hard courts. Even in extremely chaotic situations, the racket angle will not be deformed.
Therefore, the entire batting rhythm can be stable and fast, and a killer move will come if you are not careful.
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Gao Wen's serve had already taken Kei Nishikori into account, but Kei Nishikori's return still maintained a complete parabola, flew to the deep area of the baseline, and rushed up.
However, Gao Wen, who had the advantage of serving, still had a tight connection in his attack, and with one shot, he hit a small backhand diagonal shot back to the middle of the court.
There is no deliberate attempt to tear the angle apart, but instead further squeezes the ball in the deep area of the baseline, and the strong topspin is released particularly quickly after it bounces off the ground.
However, Kei Nishikori took small steps to adjust his position, and in the midst of the chaos, he still found the hitting point, put his hands under his knees, and then we can see that Kei Nishikori is still playing according to his established tactics:
Attack, attack, and attack again.
Obviously, Gawain had already pressed the landing point deep enough, but Kei Nishikori not only did not retreat, but also took the initiative to move forward. Before the strong topspin was released, he made a moon-catching movement with both hands on the backhand, accompanied by a strong pulling action, and forcibly knocked the tennis ball back.
Bang! A bullet hit.
Kei Nishikori was very bold and risky in trying to hit the ball, which meant that the tennis ball had just risen up after landing when it hit the wall and the racket, and was then knocked back, and the speed and rotation were released irregularly to the other side of the court.
Light and fast, floating and spinning.
The most important thing is that Kei Nishikori's backhand control is very delicate.
pretty!
This should be the tennis that Kei Nishikori has been trying to play since the opening.
In just one shot, Kei Nishikori turned from defense to offense, completely eliminated Gawain's serve advantage, and forced Gawain to the edge of the cliff.
Danger!
Danger danger danger!
Every cell in Gao Wen's body was on alert. He had expected Kei Nishikori's attack, but he didn't expect the whole connection to be so quick.
Gao Wen's serve and attack in the previous shot had already compressed the tempo, but now it was further compressed by Kei Nishikori, so there was no time to predict the ball and the tennis ball had already flown over.
Everything happened so fast.
(End of this chapter)