When all the pressure was on Gawain, the fifth giant who had started a craze in the ATP once again showed his big heart at the critical moment, and stood firm with an ACE to save the first set point.
The fighting spirit in those deep eyes is no less than that of Djokovic.
If Djokovic has his pride, then Gao Wen has his dream——
He longs to become a Grand Slam champion, he longs to reach the top of the world, he longs to challenge, to progress, to break through, to burn and release in his second life, and to live as gorgeously as a summer flower.
He won't back down.
Then, area one.
This time, one shot, inside corner.
Unfortunately, out of bounds.
Gao Wen tried to aim at the T point, but he lacked control and fell into the next serving area, out of bounds in the wrong area, so the second set point required him to face the test of the second serve.
Maybe, this is Djokovic's chance?
Gao Wen is very calm. He knows that Djokovic will definitely choose to fight because Djokovic has a way out. Even if he misses this set point, Djokovic will still have a third chance, and it will be his own serve point.
, so Djokovic will definitely give it a try on Gao Wen's second serve.
But the point is here. If Gawain is restrained because of this sense of oppression, he may get himself into trouble. He also needs to stay calm and focused, and the layout needs to be thought of in more detail.
Second serve, close up and press the forehand.
At the critical moment, Gao Wen still chose to break through Djokovic's forehand, and superimposed strong topspin, trying to suppress it through rotation.
Djokovic was not surprised. Although he didn't predict it, his first reaction was very timely and very fast. He got out of the way in a flash——
Instead of simply turning sideways, he takes a long step and slightly rises into the air. He uses the jumping action to make way for the ball. At the same time, he also uses the position in the air to adjust the hitting point, cleverly resolve the strong top spin of the serve, and find a way for himself.
Accurate impact point, and then hit the forehand.
This shot of receiving the serve seems simple, but in fact it is difficult. Because of the lag in the air, the body cannot exert force, and the hitting point is also in an erratic state. Either it exerts too much force and hits the ball directly into the net, or it exerts too much force.
Inadequate returns lead to missed shots, and the mistakes are often outrageous.
But Djokovic made full use of his unparalleled ability to hit the ball. With one stroke, he directly swept the tennis ball back, and the full parabola fell toward the bottom line like a meteor.
Although Gawain's second serve was not very powerful, Djokovic's cleverness still created enough space to control the tennis ball and push it into the deep zone.
Unparalleled serve-receiving ability, creating opportunities at critical moments.
Three key words——
Chasing the body. Pressing the line. Rebounding the ball.
Djokovic pushed Gawain to a desperate situation in an instant.
Sure enough, Djokovic stole the second serve. He was very smart and very fierce. The return ball landed directly at Gao Wen's feet, literally at his feet. He aimed at Gao Wen's serving position to attack this.
Remember the second serve, and with the support of lack of strength, use the placement and rhythm to leverage Gawain.
Gawain reacted awkwardly.
The serving action had just resumed, and before he had time to adjust his steps, the tennis ball was already blooming at his feet; but Gawain was mentally prepared, and he was in a state of embarrassment. He did not panic at all, and his response to swinging the racket was timely and fast, and he let the ball go immediately.
Take a small step forward and reach out to complete the rebound.
The bounce of the ball depends entirely on the feel.
Gao Wen made a big arc, and the line and landing point were very difficult to control. He could only rely on his feel and intuition to push as deep as possible, and increase the flight time of the tennis ball in the air through a full parabola to gain time to breathe and adjust.
Small steps, continuous small step adjustments, Gao Wen quickly found his defensive position and balance of center of gravity, but his eyes never left Djokovic, and he immediately realized Djokovic's intention to connect the second shot.
work hard.
Djokovic did not miss the opportunity, and the second shot was closely connected. Although Gao Wen's return was controlled in the middle, even slightly closer to the forehand area; Djokovic still did not hesitate to turn sideways forehand.
With one shot, the backslash hit Gawain's backhand sideline.
This time, Djokovic took half a step back with his right leg to make room for the ball. He seized the gap where Gao Wen's return control was not precise enough to launch an attack. The force and connection of his forehand fully extended his offensive power.
exhibit.
nothing left.
Gao Wen started the attack immediately, but he immediately discovered that Djokovic's attack was hidden, with strength and speed coming second. The final move was to hit the sideline and rebound after landing, and then continue to move outside.
Gao Wen had already lost his position when he received the serve. In order to avoid losing his hitting position again, he did not choose to attack hard. He slid into place and then cut backhand, using a controlled technique to slow down the rhythm again.
Middle road. Deep area. Press line.
With this shot, Gao Wen obviously took a breather, and his control of the line, landing point and rotation were even better. He used defense instead of attack to restrain Djokovic. Although he was still passive, the situation was slowly turning around.
.
Djokovic immediately realized that Gawain was raising his head, and he also knew that he could not relax. He shot sideways forehand for the second consecutive time. The previous shot was a backslash, and this one was a slash, aiming at the two sidelines with firepower.
Attack with wide open ground.
At the same time, Djokovic was more prepared this time, and his force was more solid. Power, speed, and rhythm were perfectly blended into this flat shot.
ah!
Djokovic made a solid effort.
Obviously, Djokovic was trying to improve his offensive quality and continue to suppress his opponents, but on the other side of the court, Gao Wen had already recovered.
With that cutting shot just now, Gawain bought himself precious breathing time, and moved quickly laterally. Although he was still in a passive defensive position, he had become calmer at this time, and he rushed over immediately.
Facing Djokovic's penetrating attack, Gao Wen did not panic at all and was already prepared——
A forehand shot. Swing around the head. Super topspin.
The key point is that in the deep zone, it should be deep enough, turn enough, heavy enough, and aim directly at the bottom line to completely pull up the parabola.
In the front, Djokovic showed off the offensive touch he had adjusted in the last three games of the second set, hitting the line and aiming for the corners.
Now, Gao Wen also shows that he keeps pushing the ball deeper and controlling the parabolic return of the ball, and he also hovers on the edge of going out of bounds.
Both players are playing according to their own plans and executing them perfectly.
Then, true professionals can see that, quietly, the two players have returned to even balance.
Because Gao Wen's super top spin really accurately pressed the bottom line, the violent rotation obviously squeezed Djokovic, so that Djokovic's center of gravity was almost "overturned."
Even though his steps were in place, even though he retreated and gave in, and even though he swung the racket resolutely, Djokovic's continuous and aggressive offensive power began to decline. By the third beat, his flat shots were already a bit unstoppable.