In the first half, the focus of the match has been one after another since the first round, but in comparison, the first week of the second half is full of nostalgia.
The style of painting is different.
From a professional perspective, Gawain's draws are pretty good. At least there are no giant killers or time bombs in the first three rounds of draws. The overall situation is relatively stable, which also means that Gawain can have some time to adapt to the game.
Adjust your status and prepare for the subsequent tough battle.
Logically speaking, this should be regarded as a wish come true, but why didn't Yu Jia and the others raise their arms and cheer in celebration?
The reason is...the first round opponent.
In fact, the high-ranking seeded players in the first half of this year each have their own challenges.
Nadal faced Coric in the first round, Murray faced Kyrgios in the first round, and Kei Nishikori faced Parre in the first round.
The first-round opponents of Djokovic and Ferrer were relatively easy, but they also faced tests in the second round, with Djokovic facing Pospisil and Ferrer facing Krajinovic.
Overall, the first round matchup in the second half lacked some topics. Even the matchup between Federer and L-Mayer was difficult to create more waves. Professionals and media reporters were generally optimistic that Federer would advance easily. After all, this is a big tournament.
In the Grand Slam arena, the situation is different after all.
If I had to pick a focus matchup in the first round in the second half, it would be "Gawain VS Zverev Jr."
——Zverev Jr., this is Gao Wen’s first-round opponent at this year’s US Open.
The reason for concern is slightly different from other first-round matchups.
Because do people believe that little Zverev can beat Gawain? Not really.
It's because of people's expectations and expectations for Youth Storm. After all, last year, Gao Wen made a shining debut on this stage and made his voice heard in a way that shocked the world. At that time, he returned to Flushing a year later, curious and looking forward to it.
, the exploratory gaze will inevitably spread.
As the undisputed leader of Youth Storm, the media will never miss Gao Wen's meeting with any young player.
What's more, Gao Wen still maintains an impressive record, a record of battles with players born after 1990, maintaining a complete victory, consolidating his status as the first player of the new generation with unparalleled performance, and undoubtedly becoming every young player.
Players are chasing an important goal of the challenge.
Besides, the grievances between little Zverev and Gao Wen also added some spice to this encounter.
Born in 1997 and just turned eighteen in April this year, little Zverev has already become the youngest player in the top 100 of the ATP world rankings. His upward momentum is very gratifying, and countless eyes have focused on him, "Ten
The voice of "I meet a genius once a year" is even more heard.
But what’s interesting is that when people mention Zverev Jr., they can’t forget one core event in their minds:
"Highest Consumption".
At this year's Miami Masters, Gauvin and Zverev met in the second round. At that time, the young and energetic Zverev said that he could beat Gauvin and issued a challenge before the game; however, Gauvin failed to do so.
He responded in a joking and teasing tone, uttering that classic quotation.
The so-called maximum consumption refers to the number of games Gao Wen lost against players born after 1995. Against Coric, Zverev Jr. and Rublev, he only lost two games, including challenge matches and ATP levels.
Competition.
Finally, "6:0", "6:2".
In Miami, Gao Wen easily swept Zverev Jr., advanced to the next round, and maintained a strong momentum all the way, finally reaching the top and winning the championship, becoming the youngest player ever to win the Sunshine Double.
In the blink of an eye, four months have passed. After experiencing the clay court season, the grass court season and the North American summer hard court season, the two young players met again——
Gao Wen, Zverev Jr., and Coric, these are the only three players born after 1995 in the current top 100 of the ATP world rankings. Now two of them are about to meet in the first round of the US Open. How could people not
How could you not care if you are paying attention?
More importantly, for young players, growth and transformation are the key rather than strength and performance. Changes may often occur between the last meeting and this meeting, and each confrontation will show different aspects.
In different situations, expectations will naturally be raised high.
It goes without saying that Gawain continues to grow; Zverev Jr. is also growing rapidly, turning all his talents into on-field strength.
The grass season is key.
Zverev Jr. won the main draw in Halle and Nottingham respectively, and for the first time in his career, he relied on the world ranking to enter the main draw of a Grand Slam and set foot on Wimbledon; he also won a game and advanced to the second round.
Suddenly, it once again triggered a frenzy in the German media.
Then, he broke into the semi-finals in Bastad and the quarter-finals in Washington, kicking off the North American summer hard court season with consecutive strong performances. Even Zverev and his team did not expect that entering the summer.
Later, he performed so well that it disrupted the plan.
Considering the Grand Slam tournament and physical arrangements, Zverev gave up the Rogers Cup and Cincinnati started playing in the qualifying rounds.
The lack of experience is still an obvious shortcoming. Zverev was unable to find his form. Although he passed the qualifying test in Cincinnati and entered the main draw, he was stopped in the first round and lost to Coric, who is one year older than him. He continued to rise.
The momentum was interrupted, which was an important lesson.
Without rest or adjustment, Zverev arrived in New York non-stop, passed the qualifying test, and advanced to the main draw without losing a set in three rounds. He stepped onto the main stage for the second consecutive Grand Slam. Naturally,
The media's expectations and attention also surged one after another.
Judging from the past two months, regardless of the lack of experience in physical distribution, Zverev has the ability to face off against the top 50 and 30 in the world, and has entered a stage of rapid growth and improvement. His impact power
and explosive power, truly at the level of top players.
Then--
There is a lottery in front of you.
Zverev is about to challenge Gao Wen again, and it will be fast and hard like Miami. So, will things be different this time?
In Yujia's view, there are pros and cons when playing against young players, because they are unpredictable and because they cannot control their own potential and energy. If Gao Wen can control the situation, it will be like playing against the "post-95" players before.
It’s at your fingertips, but what if you can’t?
Judging from Zverev's growth rate and current strength, he is not an easy nut to crack.
All kinds of scenes can't help but make people think that little Zverev is just like Gawain last year. Because he is unknown and because he is young and energetic, he finally becomes an "X factor" and everything is unknown.
Moreover, reporters who are afraid that the world will be in chaos will inevitably start to stir up trouble again. No one can be sure whether the interference from these off-site factors is a good thing or a bad thing.
No, the media immediately started to boo, and the noise was as loud as a carnival.