At the ABS Stadium, a fierce battle was going on. From cheers to exclamations, a sharp turn made the entire audience quiet down. Their eyes were focused on Zhang Ze, full of concern.
In the players' dugout, Gao Wen and the others all stood up, their eyes full of worry, holding their breaths, their hearts stopped, and they stared at Zhang Ze who fell to the ground.
Li Zhe, who was completely focused on the game, stood in front of the net, waiting for the next shot. It took him half a beat to realize the situation. He turned around and looked at his opponents and teammates, and saw it at a glance.
Zhang Ze, who was on the baseline, was supporting the ground with one hand and his racket was thrown aside.
what happened?
Li Zhe ran over and rushed over. His heart was stuck in his throat and he couldn't make a sound at all. Then he saw Zhang Ze raised his right hand and waved it to indicate that he was fine.
Li Zhe stretched out his hands, pulled Zhang Ze to stand, and helped Zhang Ze pick up the racket thrown aside. His brows were furrowed and he still did not relax.
Zhang Ze could also feel the tension and worry all over Li Zhe's body, and he took the initiative to explain:
"I just didn't hit the ground properly and slipped a bit."
"fine."
"I reacted in time, dropped the racket, and protected myself. There was no sprain or strain after the fall. Everything is fine."
In order to prove himself, Zhang Ze jumped twice on the spot, shaking his hands and feet, relaxing his limbs, just like a puppy learning to walk.
Li Zhe was speechless for a while, then he laughed without holding back.
Beside the stadium.
Wu Di also breathed a sigh of relief. The most important thing was to avoid injury.
In the Davis Cup, if an injury occurs during the game, players are not allowed to be replaced. The only option is to withdraw from the game and admit defeat. Moreover, once Zhang Ze is injured, the impact on the subsequent season will be obvious. In the second quarter of this year,
The competition has just begun.
Looking up, Wu Di noticed Gawain's frown. In terms of age, he was four years older than Gawain, so obviously he should be his elder brother.
"It should be okay, don't worry." Wu Di comforted her.
Gawain showed a smile and nodded in response, "Well, the most important thing is that you are not injured."
But Wu Di realized that Gao Wen's worry had not dissipated, "What's wrong? Worried about the game?"
Originally, Gao Wen was not prepared to say anything more, but he quickly glanced at Wu Di and noticed Wu Di's worry, and Wang Chuhan's face was also full of worry.
Think about it.
Gao Wen still said, "I'm worried about my physical condition. Now is the time when I need to pay more attention."
Mainly Zhang Ze.
In the first singles match, Zhang Ze fought hard for three and a half hours, and it didn't end until the long game decider. Such a duel is a test for any player.
In the middle, Gawain fought quickly, and it was over in less than two hours. Then, the third doubles match had to take place.
Doubles, as expected, is a battleground between the two teams. New Zealand has its own calculations, and China also has its own calculations.
Gao Wen is an objective variable, but for China, if they want to defeat New Zealand, they need three wins to realize it.
Although China has a ranking advantage in the two singles matches between Zhang Ze and Wu Di, their families know their own affairs. Zhang Ze and Wu Di are both in average form recently. It can be seen from the entanglement and struggle in today's first game, which also means
So, they should try their best to win the doubles and avoid accidents.
What's more, New Zealand does have an advantage in doubles, and this is also a game that New Zealand must win——
Marcus-Daniell, ranked 85 in the doubles world.
Artem-Sitak, ranked 50th in the world in doubles.
Moreover, these two are players who specialize in doubles. Both players have Challenger doubles titles to their names and have won a lot of ATP level events.
On the other side, Zhang Ze’s doubles world ranking is 352, and Li Zhe’s doubles world ranking is 273.
The difference is obvious.
Of course, in singles and doubles, there is a certain gap between the top 100 in the world and the top 300 in the world, but the gap is not as huge as imagined.
Compared with singles, doubles is more about tacit understanding and cooperation. What the world ranking shows is more about the time and results of doubles than strength. Just like Gao Wen and Nadal, their doubles world ranking is not at all.
It’s worth mentioning, but it still topped the list of champions in Doha.
However, Daniel and Steck are indeed able to rank among the top 100 in the doubles world rankings.
The trend of the game is unpredictable.
The high-spirited Chinese team showed their determination to win. They won the first two sets and two tie-breaks.
"7:6(3)", "7:6(4)".
There is only one set left to advance to the next round.
However, the New Zealand combination also refused to surrender.
"6:7(1)".
In the third set, it was still a tie-break. This time, the New Zealand team dominated the tie-break, winning easily and regaining the set.
In the following fourth set, Zhang Ze's physical strength could already be felt to fluctuate significantly.
"3:6".
The New Zealand team won another set amid the cheers of the home fans, and the two sides had to enter the final set.
At this time, it was already 9:30 pm local time in Auckland, and the doubles match had been going on for more than two hours, but it was still not over.
For Zhang Ze, the physical test has indeed reached its limit.
Although Gao Wen emphasized that it should be the mind that truly makes a qualitative change in the tennis game; it is undeniable that physical ability is the foundation.
Physical fitness is the top priority.
A group of players, including Zhang Ze and Wu Di, have been training for the Grand Slam's best-of-five-set system, but judging from the current results, it is still not enough.
At the Australian Open at the beginning of the year, after Zhang Ze defeated Hewitt in the first round, his fatigue could be seen in the second round, and he lost to Germany's Benjamin Becker without much struggle.
Now, the same is true.
Entering the final set, the game between the two sides was still stalemate, and the gap was never widened.
At this time, the score was deadlocked to "4:4".
Both sides still refused to give in.
Zhang Ze and Li Zhe once again faced challenges in their own service games, but at the critical moment, their physical strength could not keep up. Zhang Ze's knees became weak and he obviously did not have the strength to push on the ground. When exerting force, the soles of his feet slipped and he was directly injured.
Fell down and missed the ball return.
Then, a fatal break point was sent.
"40:AD".
It can be seen from the situation in the first three sets that it is very difficult for both sides to break serve. Once the serve is broken, the whole game may be given up.
Not a match point, but better than a match point.
New Zealand hopes to seize the opportunity of Zhang Ze's extreme physical strength, end the game in one go, and recover the big score by one point.
There is no doubt that this is New Zealand's lifeline. They are already standing on the edge of the cliff, so they desperately need a victory in this doubles.
Two sets behind, two sets behind and three sets behind?
Does this story sound familiar?
New Zealand's morale and state reached a new peak, and the cheers and cheers from the home audience came overwhelmingly.
Zhang Ze and Li Zhe were inevitably a little uneasy, as the whole situation was indeed not good for them.
Subconsciously, both of them glanced at the players' dugout, and then they could see——
"fighting!"
Gawain was clenching his fists and shouting, his eyes were so bright and dazzling, and his firm belief was burning.