Chapter 882 Center Court
As we all know, Nadal is the king of clay. His best and most perfect performance in the four Grand Slams is definitely the French Open. So, what is the second place after the French Open?
Many fans thought it should be the US Open, which they have won four times, but judging by the statistics, it is not the case, but the Australian Open.
Melbourne Park is the venue where Nadal performed second best but also the most tragic.
In terms of winning rate and number of wins, the Australian Open ranks second only to the French Open; but in terms of number of championships and final winning rate, the Australian Open ranks last.
Before the 2022 Australian Open, Nadal reached the quarterfinals thirteen times and the finals five times in Melbourne, but only won one championship in 2009.
Even more miserable than Wimbledon, where he played on and off in the second half of his career.
Among active players, Nadal has reached the Australian Open finals more times than Djokovic and Federer, but he has only won one championship.
In 2010, during the quarter-final against Murray, he suffered a knee injury and had no choice but to withdraw.
In 2011, in the quarter-finals against Ferrer, his hamstring injury recurred and he was defeated.
In 2012, in the final against Djokovic, he was defeated and lost the championship after breaking first in the deciding set. This match, which lasted nearly six hours, is still the longest Grand Slam final in the Open Era.
In 2013, he was absent due to injury.
In 2014, in the final against Stan Wawrinka, his back injury recurred. He fought hard for four sets and helped his opponent win his first Grand Slam title.
At a glance.
In other words, since winning the Australian Open in 2009, except for 2012, injuries have always been an important role that cannot be ignored.
You are too young and naive to think that this is all there is.
In 2017, in the final against Federer, he also broke first in the deciding set, but was reversed and lost the championship, witnessing Federer breaking a five-year Grand Slam title drought.
In 2018, in the semi-final against Cilic, he was leading by two sets when he suffered a knee injury. After struggling to hold on, he had no choice but to retire.
In 2021, in the quarter-finals against Tsitsipas, he was leading by two sets but suffered a back injury in the third set. Despite this, he still got the match point first, but because of the injury, he made a rare and outrageous high-pressure ball mistake at the match point, and was eventually reversed and eliminated, which even caused him to be directly reimbursed for the next half of the season.
So? Are Nadal and Melbourne Park incompatible? Why is it that every time he comes to Melbourne, he is always plagued by injuries?
Even Nadal himself said with a wry smile.
"I have a lot of good memories here, but at the same time, I also lack a little luck. Sometimes, my opponents simply play better than me; sometimes, I am unlucky and suffer injuries. So, here, I have left many, many special memories."
It is also because of this that for Nadal's fans, the French Open may be the favorite event, but the Australian Open will always be an indelible mole.
A little bit of luck, a little bit of metaphysics, and a little bit of coincidence ultimately led to Nadal's tragedy in Melbourne Park.
Here, Nadal has never been the one favored by the goddess of luck.
So, what about this year?
The trajectory of history has quietly changed, and the butterfly effect has begun to appear in Melbourne Park this year.
This time, Nadal's opponent in the quarterfinals standing on the other side of the net has become Gao Wen. History is about to be rewritten. Will the result be different?
Even if people don't know what will happen in the future, judging from Nadal's past record in Melbourne Park, there is reason to be more curious about this year's showdown.
Just like Evert.
Obviously, the Australian Open Organizing Committee also agrees, which can be seen from the schedule -
On the ninth day of competition, the quarterfinals of the men's and women's singles all entered the Rod Laver Arena without exception. The focus now is whether it will be a day session or a night session?
From this we can see the importance of the stadium arrangement:
Nadal played all of the previous four rounds at Rod Laver Arena. Obviously, he has had sufficient experience with this year's venue conditions; moreover, he has experienced both day and night sessions, so at least he does not need to adapt again.
But that was not the case for Gao Wen. He played three rounds at Hisense Arena and one at Margaret Court Arena, all in the day. This meant that he was not familiar with Rod Laver Arena or the night courts. Everything was new and unfamiliar, and he had to adapt to and adjust everything.
Precisely because of this, those high-ranking seeded players who are the favorites to win the championship often care about their venue arrangements. They need to adapt to Rod Laver Arena in advance and prepare for the subsequent decisive stage.
For ordinary players, they have no time to think about subsequent games. No one knows whether they can persist until the quarterfinals. Naturally, there is no need to worry about things that are so far away or even impossible. Compared to the venue, winning one game at a time is the top priority.
The schedule was released in the evening of the previous day.
Daytime.
In the first match, Ekaterina Makarova vs. Halep.
The second game, Sharapova vs. Bouchard.
The third game, Murray vs. Karlovic.
Night show.
The first game, Nadal VS Gawain.
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The second match was an Australian civil war in the second round of mixed doubles, with four players from both sides facing each other, three of whom were hosts.
A little bit of thinking can reveal the little emotions of the Australian Open Organizing Committee, a little bit of helplessness, a little bit of stubbornness, and a little bit of persistence.
In fact, on the ninth day of competition, the quarterfinals of the men's doubles and women's doubles also started. These matches are more interesting to watch than the second round of a mixed doubles match. However, the organizing committee was in a bad mood and arranged the second round of the mixed doubles match to be held in the center court.
Moreover, even if the second round of the mixed doubles match was scheduled at Rod Laver Arena, the day session would be enough, and the night session could have been used to arrange a brilliant match between Sharapova and Bouchard. However, the organizing committee insisted on its own ideas.
The reason is very simple, there is more or less some anger in it -
After Kyrgios was eliminated, the organizing committee felt aggrieved, depressed and angry. In order to meet the needs of the home audience, they selected such a match as the main event of the ninth match day at Rod Laver Arena.
What’s more interesting is that the finale will be the duel between Nadal and Gawain.
Is this... bad taste? So, the organizing committee just wants to see Nadal defeat Gawain, and then the host players join hands to celebrate? No one knows how the organizing committee feels when making such an arrangement.
But the final reality is...
Gao Wen finally entered Rod Laver Arena, and it was a night game? His level rose too fast, and he didn't even have time to fasten his seat belt.
However, man proposes, God disposes, and the organizing committee never expected that -
The daytime match was a flop.
Makarova swept Halep, losing only four games in the match.
Sharapova swept Bouchard, losing only five games in the match.
Murray swept Karlovic in straight sets.
It's confusing.
It was so confusing that the audience had no time to get into the mood before all the day's matches were over. They ended so early that the Rod Laver Arena was cleared before the sun even set.
What followed was a long wait, waiting for the night match to start at 7pm. It was boring and drowsy. Was this really the right way to start the quarterfinals? (End of this chapter)