There was thunderous applause at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The entire audience stood up collectively, high-fiving and chanting, and the billowing heat was burning under the night sky.
In the players' box, Sharapova, who appeared in Flushing for the first time after announcing her retirement this year and stood under the spotlight again, remained calm and expressionless, no different from her own performance on the court.
But attentive spectators can notice that Sharapova clenched her fists tightly and stared intently at the court. Her motionless body revealed a slight stiffness. This was a detail that would not appear in her own game.
Under the peacock blue sky, the temperature is still dropping, and the wild wind is roaring in the ears. However, the heat wave inside Arthur Ashe Stadium is filled with steam and halo, and the light all over the sky is blooming proudly.
In the players' lounge, Federer and Gawain have also arrived, both staring at the TV screen——
Game points, "4:6", "6:4", "6:3", "5:4".
Small minutes, "15:40".
In Dimitrov's serve game, Djokovic got two consecutive points.
Once Djokovic is able to deliver, the game is over and the next game needs to enter the "preparatory phase", so the two players are already in place.
On the TV screen, neither player was distracted and remained 100% focused. The live camera gave Dimitrov a close-up, and then gave Sharapova a close-up. The intention was obvious.
The scene flashed by, and Gawain couldn't help but think of their chat at the gym yesterday.
Because of the rain, the players were unable to enter the field for training and could only complete basic training in the gym, which was relatively relaxed and had plenty of time.
Occasionally, players will gather together to play games, ranging from football to tennis; but now that the tournament is coming to an end and the gym is empty, players will gather in twos and threes to watch TV and chat, kill time, or just have fun with themselves
The team huddles together.
Dimitrov was originally planning to take a day off. Anyway, there was no supervision or planning from the coach, but when he saw Gawain entering the gym to continue training, he also followed him into the gym to start training honestly, and the two chatted without saying a word.
.
Last year at Wimbledon, Dimitrov had a great success and was in the period of rapid rise. After defeating Murray, his confidence reached a new level. Even against Djokovic, Dimitrov believed in himself.
Able to win -
At least, that's the belief.
But the confidence, calmness, stability and strength that Djokovic showed at critical moments taught Dimitrov a good lesson.
"6:4", "3:6", "7:6(2)", "7:6(7)".
Whether it was his overall dominance in the third set tie-break or the key handling of the fourth set tie-break, Djokovic suppressed Dimitrov with an unparalleled performance, although Dimitrov did not notice it at the time and lost.
I was just a little disappointed after losing the game, but the consequences were far-reaching.
Later, when Dimitrov encountered the Big Four again, deep down in his heart, at the lowest and deepest level, his confidence suffered a serious setback——
If you go all out to launch an attack when you are at your best and most confident, but still lose, does that mean there is an insurmountable gap between them?
In fact, it is not just Dimitrov, but also all other players in the era of the Big Four, including Gasquet, Berdych, etc. Time and time again, they have great ambitions to impact, compete and challenge the Four.
A giant, but it swallows the memories of tragic failures time and time again.
So, when they stood in front of the four giants again, something at the most essential and core position was different after all.
It is precisely because of this that when facing Murray again at this year's Australian Open, Dimitrov's performance at critical moments showed some deviations and vulnerabilities that he did not expect. Coupled with his high expectations, Dimitrov's performance after losing the game
The disappointment and pain were indescribable and enough to destroy his confidence.
The trough began like this.
After fifteen months, he has regained his form again, returned to the semi-finals of a Grand Slam, and faced Djokovic again. If Dimitrov is still energetic, confident and ambitious, then that is
It's unrealistic; but Dimitrov also knows that some things need to be faced after all.
"I want to try."
It was a very simple and casual sentence. When Dimitrov said it, he didn't even think too much and just showed a smile.
However, when these words fell on Gawain's ears, he could feel the wisdom that had gradually settled after being polished by wind and rain. It was not a lack of confidence or caution, but a kind of perseverance and determination.
Maybe Dimitrov also realized that the chance of victory was not on his side, but he was still ready to fight and fight, and he wanted to give it a try.
At this time, looking at the silence in Dimitrov's eyes, Gawain heard these words again -
Dimitrov, serve.
Djokovic's return performance was very good. Facing a serve with a speed of 201 kilometers per hour, Djokovic's package successfully pushed the tennis ball into an awkward position on Dimitrov's backhand, although it did not break the angle.
But this return serve successfully squeezed Dimitrov.
This is hard power.
But Dimitrov's handling was also very amazing. His backhand was squeezed and it was difficult to complete the swing smoothly. He simply gave up the complete swing and followed the direction of Djokovic's return. His backhand just opened
Halfway, in the direction of the backslash, I used my strength to push back and beat him back.
Light, clever, and astounding in skill.
Without any force, just a push and a push in a passive state, Dimitrov not only resolved the crisis, but also made Djokovic passive.
Sure enough, when Djokovic rushed to hit the ball from the forehand position, the hitting point was awkward and the package of the return ball was slightly missing. He quickly pushed it back to the center of the court in an attempt to limit Dimitrov's offensive connection.
, but was caught by Dimitrov's decisive sideways forehand.
Forehand and backslash, I found Djokovic's backhand position in the shallow area on the sideline. As soon as he hit the ball with his skateboard, the tennis ball went straight out.
Score!
"30:40".
pretty!
A burst of applause erupted in the players' lounge, and Gao Wen simply whistled, giving his friend all the applause and cheers without hesitation.
At this point, Djokovic's performance was already very good, but Dimitrov's two-shot backhand slash, forehand and backhand, vividly interpreted the inspiration of tennis.
It's not just amazing.
After saving the first break point, Dimitrov did not celebrate at all, his eyes remained firm, revealing an indomitable belief.
Because Dimitrov knows how powerful Djokovic is, and precisely because he knows this, he is ready to continue burning and fighting. This is what he learned from his good friend after fighting side by side with Gawain for a long time.
The fur that arrived——
The moment you give up, the game is over.
And now, the battle belonging to Dimitrov continues.
Plop! Plop!
The beating of the heart is short and powerful, one after another, and the vigorous vitality and high fighting spirit are gushing out.