Fans who are familiar with Gao Wen's game should know that Gao Wen's return of serve is very good.
Especially after Agassi joined the coaching team, this technical link showed top level at this year's Australian Open. Facing Murray and Djokovic, he even dared to directly attack the first serve, which really made the opponent very uncomfortable.
It also became the starting point for Gao Wen to reverse Djokovic in the final.
Coupled with Gao Wen's outstanding performance against the cannon, it further proved Gao Wen's ability to handle the return of serve.
But...why?
Facing Coric's serve which was neither heavy nor fast, Gao Wen actually chose to lob the ball?
No, to be precise, it should be the moon ball.
The tennis ball pulled out a full parabola and penetrated into the sky full of sunlight, just like the arrival of a spaceship. The moment it was about to disappear, it reappeared and fell rapidly.
audience:???
What kind of return of serve is this?
Gawain's steps were almost in place, why did he suddenly choose a moon ball? What kind of tactic was this? Did Gawain take the initiative to give up receiving the serve and attack?
Coric:???
And not just the audience? Coric was also full of questions at this time. What happened to this mindless return?
But Coric had no time to panic.
Small step adjustment, continuous small step adjustment.
Coric waited a little long at the baseline because the parabola of Gao Wen's moon was very full——
To be more precise, it should be very long, long, long...
Gao Wen's moon ball took a diagonal line and landed on the left side of Coric's baseline, which suppressed Coric's backhand.
As a result, because the flight time of the tennis ball was too long, Coric had enough room to adjust. Not only did he switch from backhand to sideways forehand, but he had already set up the forehand for a long time, but still did not wait for the ball to arrive.
It's really "wait until the flowers fade".
Then--
finally come!
The landing point is delicate and precise. At this time, you can see Gawain's touch and feel of the ball. With a calm and unhurried ball, he controlled the return ball within the triangle of the bottom line and landed accurately in the blind spot.
Press the line!
Moreover, the strong topspin also means squeezing Coric’s hitting space.
Coric was also very uncomfortable.
"Top spin VS top spin", this is called giving back to others in their own way.
In fact, Coric's best way to deal with it is to take two steps back, open up space, and then sweep the ball with his forehand, just like Gawain.
However, the difficulty lies in the fact that the forehand hitting force is required to be higher, otherwise it may hit the ball directly into the net.
Like Del Potro, who swept away thousands of troops with one forehand, this kind of moon ball was his opportunity to attack. He would step back and move his upper body, then forcefully sweep with his forehand, and hit the ball with a surprise whip.
You can kill him directly by shooting, and winning points is as easy as drinking water.
Unfortunately, there is only one Del Potro.
Not only is Coric not Del Potro, but his strength is his fatal shortcoming, both on his forehand and backhand. His attack power is insufficient and he cannot sweep away.
Coric was also somewhat conflicted. Reason told him that he should retreat, swing the racket completely, and hit the ball fully. But emotion roared that he should seize the opportunity. Gawain took the initiative to hit the moon. This opportunity must not be missed.
A brief hesitation, no more than a moment, but in competitive sports, it is a huge difference, and the entire batting action immediately becomes delayed.
Moreover, Coric just waited too long. He kept waiting after setting up his forehand, and his grasp of the hitting point became slow.
One centimeter, one centimeter.
When Coric took action, he immediately realized something was wrong——
late.
The hitting point is a little bit late, but just a little bit, and the entire hitting power is not sufficient, which can be heard from the sound of the hitting.
Coric did not retreat, he still stood there and attacked forcefully. However, the two-handed backhand attack also pulled out a small parabola. Although it was not as full as Gao Wen's moon ball, it did not have the speed or power to make the transition.
Simply send the tennis ball back.
The diagonal line sends the tennis ball back again, but the problem is that the line and landing point are mediocre and have no restrictive effect. It is basically an invalid shot.
Oops!
Coric's alarm bells rang loudly. Now he finally understood the purpose of Gawain's moon. The most important thing was to break the balance, which instantly disrupted the rhythm.
The opportunity to attack came to Gawain!
However, Coric is not panicked. What he is best at is "passively beaten". In a passive defensive state, he can often find his touch.
really!
Gawain's two-handed backhand immediately launched an attack, shooting diagonally -
One shot.
Another shot.
Coric was very, very embarrassed. He barely blocked two backhand shots with both hands. He had no time to think and reflexively sent the tennis ball back along the diagonal.
At the same time, his steps always remained light, and he did not forget that his entire forehand half had been cleared, and Gao Wen could change his line at any time and directly penetrate the defense line.
The third shot!
For the third consecutive beat, Gawain once again hit the tennis ball to the diagonal landing point, and this time he controlled the tennis ball very deeply, and the hitting power was obviously increased.
What about Coric?
Although he was embarrassed, he was still able to cope with it. It looked like a tree branch in a storm, shaking violently, but still firmly holding on to the ground.
This kind of passive hitting is exactly his unique skill——
The baseline defensive hitting in the chaos and turbulence is very stable, maintaining quality and quantity, ensuring that your return can form a containment, stop the opponent's mercury-like offensive frenzy, and then look for opportunities for defensive counterattacks.
boom!
Coric pushed the tennis ball back for the third consecutive shot, and the push was of a certain quality, but then Coric saw Gawain's action.
tread.
Take a step forward, enter the baseline, and prepare to recover the rising point of the ball.
Kill the board.
Coric immediately realized that Gawain was about to hit the board. With a kick of his left foot, his body sprinted towards his forehand position.
Backhand straight line, this is Gawain's famous stunt, and it is also the protagonist of the next three sets in this year's Australian Open final.
Coric had already been mentally prepared for this. The entire start and movement was very fast, and his conditioned reflex had already responded.
but!
As soon as he stepped forward, his pupils were already dilated. He looked in disbelief at Gawain on the other side of the court as he completed his swing. The entire shot was light and crisp.
slash!
It’s still a slash!
Moreover, not only was it a diagonal line, Gawain stepped forward to grab the rising point, and then used a half-volley to completely release the entire two-handed backhand hitting action, hitting a skateboard shot, and the entire diagonal shot was
The line angle is completely torn apart, shallow and biased.
Tear.
You could even hear the sound of the court being torn apart, and immediately after, the tennis ball had already rushed out in a diagonal direction.
It landed in the service area on the left side of Coric, and like a serve, it flew towards the reporter's photo area outside with external spin and side spin.
Understated, free and easy, Gawain's whole body is like a roc spreading its wings, making full use of the width of the court.
Coric was helpless and could only watch the return of the ball without any other options.