Chapter 816 Facing Pressure
"Don't be so scared."
"I swear, I am really a pig, not a tiger. I usually stick a green onion in my nose and pretend to be a pig to eat a tiger. Don't be scared by me."
As he spoke, Gao Wen gestured with his fingers, pretending to be an "ivory" scallion, and made a big face at Zhang Shuai with his teeth and claws bared.
Phew.
Zhang Shuai couldn't help laughing out loud - the same joke actually had a sequel, and the second time was obviously funnier than the first time.
But isn't there a logic problem with the joke?
"Pretending to be a pig and eating a tiger, that doesn't seem to be the right way to use it, right? If you put a green onion in your nose, isn't that an elephant?"
Zhang Shuai looked at Gao Wen and reminded him carefully.
Gawain thought about it seriously, and then said with a very serious and sincere expression.
"Oops, that's a mistake."
"The Chinese language is indeed profound and extensive. I haven't used it for a long time, so I ended up making a fool of myself. It's okay, just treat it as a joke."
Puff...Puff.
"Watching a joke" doesn't seem to be the right phrase to use, but it doesn't matter. Zhang Shuai laughed happily again, and the whole atmosphere became relaxed.
Gao Wen did not seem too embarrassed. A bright and clean smile rose slightly at the corners of his mouth, and he returned to the topic.
"Yes, I do."
Zhang Shuai was stunned and didn't react for a moment.
"When I walked onto Arthur Ashe Stadium, I knew I could win. More importantly, I knew I was out there battling it out."
Judging from the results in her previous life, Zhang Shuai does have the strength to break through the first round of the Grand Slam and even enter the second week, but it is also a fact that she has lost fourteen games in a row in the first round of the Grand Slam.
What went wrong?
A little bit of luck, but more of a psychological factor.
If possible, Gao Wen also hopes to give Zhang Shuai a little help to help her end the losing streak in the first round of Grand Slams early.
More importantly, Gao Wen hopes to see new generation players such as Zhang Shuai and Wang Qiang take up the banner of Chinese women's tennis, because only in this way can the influence of tennis in mainland China continue to expand, allowing more and more young people to join the sport and create a future.
To some extent, Gawain was also a little hesitant:
He is not familiar with Zhang Shuai, and all he knows about Zhang Shuai comes from the media, so he is not sure what Zhang Shuai's mentality is.
Some people have such strong self-esteem that they refuse to ask for other people’s opinions, and any suggestion may be considered “pity/sympathy”.
Some people are introverted and if they give advice rashly, they may appear too aggressive and invasive, with a condescending tone.
For various reasons, Gao Wen did not speak directly. If Zhang Shuai had not asked, he would not have boasted and would have just ended the training in a friendly manner.
But since Zhang Shuai asked, Gao Wen doesn't mind sharing some of his own experiences, hoping that it can be of some help.
Standing under the sun, Gawain smiled widely.
"You know, a lot of people always say, don't think about it as a Grand Slam, just treat it as a normal tournament."
"But how is that possible?"
"That's the Grand Slam, that's the semifinals, the finals, that's the top game that happens on Arthur Ashe Stadium."
"How can it be considered an ordinary game?"
Gao Wen's words immediately brightened Zhang Shuai's eyes and made his expression lively. Although Gao Wen was talking about his own affairs, Zhang Shuai could deeply empathize with him.
The same is true for the first round of a Grand Slam.
"Yes, yes, yes." Zhang Shuai nodded repeatedly, "That's completely different. How can we treat it as a simple, ordinary game?"
"Everyone treats it like a normal game, but the problem is, it's not!"
Just like when Sampras and Glover talked about Grand Slam titles before, Glover’s response was the same: Maybe, for Sampras or earlier times, the meaning and status of the Grand Slam were not that important, and they could adjust their mentality.
But the young generation born after the 1980s watched Sampras and Agassi present one peak showdown after another on the Grand Slam stage. For them, the significance of the four Grand Slams is self-evident. It is a dream stage and also a shining stage.
When a Grand Slam kicks off, when you walk onto Centre Court, the feeling is completely different.
Sampras is right about one thing, they should not "mythologize" the Grand Slams, and a calm mind is an important factor in unleashing one's full strength; but other than that, the special status of the Grand Slams is indeed irreplaceable, just like the Olympics and the World Cup for professional players.
Every professional tennis player should feel the same way about this, and Zhang Shuai and Gao Wen are no exception.
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Gao Wen also nodded in affirmation. "The more we want to ignore it, the more the pressure exists objectively. They have never really experienced a Grand Slam match, so they think that treating the Grand Slam match as an ordinary match is a feasible method."
"Yes, it's totally not feasible. The more I think about it, the more awkward and heavy I feel, and the more I care about this game." Zhang Shuai's words came out of her mouth unconsciously.
Gao Wen continued, "So, the right way is to face these pressures and burdens. This is indeed an extraordinary game, a crucial game, a Grand Slam game, and then turn the pressure into motivation."
Zhang Shuai: …
The words are simple.
In fact, everyone knows that we should turn pressure into motivation. The right amount of pressure can stimulate our performance. But the question is, how should we do it? How can pressure be turned into motivation? How can we get the right amount of pressure?
Gao Wen noticed the look in Zhang Shuai's eyes... Was that contempt? This did not make Gao Wen angry, but instead made Gao Wen laugh happily, "Were you contemptuous of me just now?"
Zhang Shuai's wheat-colored cheeks flushed slightly and he became restrained, but he didn't know how to explain himself. The second meeting was still unfamiliar.
Gao Wen didn't mind and waved his hand, "My answer is, believe in yourself."
This sentence drew Zhang Shuai's attention back.
"When I stepped onto the court, I believed in myself, believed that I could win, believed that I could fight to the last minute without reservation, and believed that I could leave the court without any regrets."
"This belief can't really make us win, because the game still depends on the performance of the opponent, but it can make us focus on the game."
"Pressure comes from desire. Pressure exists because of the desire to win and because we care deeply. What we should do is to remember the source and form of this pressure."
"So, you just asked me if I believed I could win."
“My answer is yes.”
"If there is only one person in the world who believes that I can win, it should be me. I believe in myself unwaveringly and 100%. When I stepped onto the court, I came to fight to the end with all my strength. I was the last person in the court who still believed in myself."
"Technically, even my parents weren't so sure sometimes."
(End of this chapter)