You can clearly hear the gasps coming from the O2 Arena. This is obviously not what they want to see. For the fans, they just hope that the game will be more exciting and better to watch. The final set would be perfect, but they did not expect that.
The first point of the serve-winning game was a double fault.
Without words, you can feel the slightly tense atmosphere.
There is no doubt that Djokovic also knows the importance of serving to win the set, especially the quality of the serve. He must maintain the threat of serving.
However, the problem still lies in physical fitness.
First of all, this is the end of the second set.
Secondly, after a fierce first set, the second set forced the improvement of the state.
Thirdly, the mental pressure also increases as the game progresses.
Djokovic can feel the continuous pressure and impact from Gao Wen in the past four games. He must be in better condition to suppress his opponent. It is precisely because of this that Gao Wen's serve in the last game was
Let go, but the pressure still exists objectively, and consumption is still unavoidable.
Of course, the peak of physical fitness has not yet appeared.
In a best-of-five-set match, Djokovic’s physical peak is often in the third set, which is basically the case for giants; and in a best-of-three-set match, Djokovic will take a breather at the beginning of the second set
, not a peak, just an adjustment. But Djokovic has forced himself to improve his condition, and his physical peak may be slightly ahead of schedule.
Under the comprehensive influence of different levels——
then.
A double fault occurs.
Djokovic was not surprised, but he kept a poker face and did not reveal any emotions. At least he could not be detected by Gawain. He needed to persist in this service game, and he believed he could.
Experienced in taking advantage of the opportunity to wipe his sweat and adjust his breathing slightly, Djokovic was ready.
"0:15".
Djokovic still did not relax, and remained tight from serving to attack. However, he did not expect that in the passive situation where his forehand was suppressed, Gao Wen pulled a forehand with topspin, lifted the parabola, and won
The tennis ball moves in a straight line toward Djokovic's backhand half of the court.
It's not the bottom line deep area, but half court, and it rises high after landing.
Djokovic arrived early and did not cut to the baseline. He still stood half a step behind the baseline and hit the backhand with both hands.
However--
J.
Djokovic's swing grabbed half a beat, and he used force at a high point. As a result, he hit the ball a little earlier, pressed down a little earlier, and knocked the tennis ball off the net.
A mistake, a very, very simple mistake.
He.
The whole audience exclaimed.
No one could believe that Djokovic would make such a simple mistake. Could it be that Djokovic's entire point-grabbing attack was too strong?
No, the answer is quite the opposite.
In fact, it was because Djokovic lacked the strength to kick off the ground and did not fully close the moment when he swung and pushed the racket, which caused the return ball to go directly into the net.
Things went as Gawain expected.
A well-placed lob can not only consume Djokovic's physical energy and destroy Djokovic's offense, but can also become a touchstone of Djokovic's condition. Then Gao Wen will know that the opportunity has come.
Although serving to win the set is not the best opportunity, two games ago is the most appropriate; but it is better to be late than never, and Gao Wen's hard work finally gave him the opportunity.
Gawain is ready.
Djokovic is also aware of the crisis.
They have met too many times this year, and no one knows Gao Wen's progress and growth better than Djokovic. He believes Gao Wen has seen the clues, but he cannot show it and must stay calm.
Djokovic didn't wipe his sweat this time.
This is intentional.
He is not prepared to expose his shortcomings, but is prepared to seize Gawain's mentality and launch a counterattack. As a giant, he also has his own means of dealing with crises.
"0:30"?
It doesn't matter, he knows what to do.
——The serve was straight to the T point in the inner corner of the area. The deceleration and force reduction were as precise as walking over and placing the tennis ball on the T point with both hands. Gao Wen tried his best to touch the ball but failed to complete the swing and hit it directly.
.
"15:30".
——Serving to the net, containing the inside corner of the second area and combining it with a forward forehand slash volley and smash, it pressed to the right sideline of Gao Wen. Although Gao Wen ran with all his strength to save the ball, he had lost his position. Djokovic pushed gently.
It's enough to go back to the court.
"30:30".
Back and forth, Djokovic was already in control of the situation before he even had time to blink.
In these two points, the serve plays an important role. In fact, it is the same as the double fault in the first point. Djokovic knew that he needed to maintain the power of his serve to connect the subsequent attacks, so he took the risk of the second serve, which was only the first point.
It's just a slight deviation that resulted in a double error.
Now, Djokovic is back in control.
So, what about Gawain?
He slightly raised his eyebrows. If his opponent served well, then he really couldn't do anything. He couldn't even return the serve, let alone what happened next. Any lobs would be of no use.
But Gawain was not depressed.
Continue to the next point.
really--
One shot, out of bounds.
This time when he came to the first zone, Djokovic tried to sneak attack from the outside corner. The last time he hit the T-point in the first zone, Djokovic obviously wanted to spread the serving point to avoid being inertia by Gawain and adapting.
.
Unfortunately, it's out of bounds.
Second serve.
Look, this is Gawain's chance.
So, is it the outer corner or the inner corner this time?
Gawain's attention was highly concentrated, holding the racket with both hands to keep his center of gravity light, staring at his opponent intently, and carefully observing the serving action.
With a slight jump, his center of gravity broke away from the shackles of gravity. His whole body was as light as a feather. Then he stood on tiptoes and flew towards the right.
outer corner.
It's the outer corner again.
and--
audacious in the extreme.
Djokovic made a second serve, which was exactly the same as the double fault in the first point. The second serve was not conservative and was just as aggressive, but this time he scored.
The second serve carried strong spin, landed in the small triangle of the service area, and then flew out.
Beautiful large outside angle with strong side spin.
Gawain's reaction was very alert, and he rushed out immediately. But just as his body started to activate, he saw a figure approaching quickly from the corner of his vision.
...online?
Gawain somewhat doubted his own judgment.
It is very surprising that Djokovic chose to serve and hit the court. Among the Big Four, he took the risk of serving and hitting the ball the least often, and now in 2015, the number of times is even less than later.
As a result, Djokovic also chose to go online with his second serve, which was not only risky but also crazy.
But it was precisely because he was crazy about taking risks that he easily overturned the situation.
If you think about it seriously, it’s not surprising. This is in line with Djokovic’s consistently strong strategy in the second set, and also in line with Djokovic’s strategy of shortening rounds as his physical fitness declines. It even matches Gawain’s strategy of serving to win the set in the first set.
Somewhat similar, unexpectedly breaking the balance.
tread.
Gawain was moving sideways, just one step.
Tap tap tap.
Djokovic is moving vertically, approaching the net with continuous long strides.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Gawain had no time to be surprised or stunned. His forehand had already been completely stretched out.