Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 136 Chen Ran VS Agassi, the battle begins!
Under the attention of the global media, the draw for the quarterfinals of this Australian Open has finally come out.

In the first game, Chen Ran played against No. 2 seed Agassi. This was the first game in the Australian Open quarter-finals and also the focus of the game.

In the second game, No. 6 seed Federer played against No. 18 seed Ainoy. This was the second game of the Australian Open quarterfinals.

Federer is undoubtedly happy because his opponent in the quarter-finals changed from No. 4 seed Hewitt to 1th seed Ainoy.

The door to the top four seems to be waving to me.

In the third game, No. 4 seed Ferrero played against unseeded player Blake from the United States.

In the fourth game, No. 7 seed Novak faced off against unseeded South African veteran Ferreira.

This year's Australian Open is indeed a series of upsets. There are actually three unseeded players in the quarterfinals.

However, Ferreira was once one of the top five players in the world, but his status has declined in recent years, but he seems to have a second spring at this Australian Open.

The match between Chen Ran and Agassi is scheduled for [-]pm Australian time, which is equivalent to [-]pm Yanjing time.

The temperature in Australia in January is basically between 17℃ and 29℃.

Two o'clock in the afternoon is the hottest time of the day.

If you don’t count Chen Ran’s previous ITF hopes and only count from the professional competition, this is Chen Ran’s first time competing in high temperatures.

At this moment, the central court, which can accommodate 5000 people, is already packed with spectators from all over the world.

Because of the appeal of tennis king Agassi, tickets for the game are very popular.

The local Chinese audience only grabbed about two-fifths of the tickets. It seems that Chen Ran's unique home court treatment is gone.

Zhan Jun, the host in the C5 Sports live broadcast room, joked: "It's summer in Australia, but it's winter in China. When you watch the game at noon, you may not need to think about taking a nap."

The invited guest was Wang Liangzuo, the former head coach of the China Tennis Team. He had witnessed Chen Ran defeat the American supernova Roddick before, and he felt particularly complicated.

Even if Chen Ran cannot eliminate Agassi, with his current reputation as a Grand Slam quarterfinalist, no one in the national team can suppress him.

So when he comes to the national team, he has to go to heaven?

As for this game, he never felt that Chen Ran had a chance to win against Agassi.

Who is Agassi?More than ten years ago, this name was already famous.

Chen Ran had no chance.

However, a few days ago, the newly appointed director of the Tennis Management Center, Sun Jinfang, had already spoken that Chen Ran was willing to participate in next year's Athens Olympics.

She also asked the national team to prepare all logistical work and fully support Chen Ran in preparing for the Athens Olympics.

That kid is now the favorite in Director Sun's eyes.

As for the Davis Cup, the tennis team competition that Wang Liangzuo couldn't forget, Director Sun said coldly, "We'll discuss it again" and dismissed himself.

But considering that we are all Chinese and tennis people, Wang Liangzuo hopes that Chen Ran can still create some little trouble for the king of tennis.

……

"The weather is really muggy and hot!"

After Chen Ran did some simple warm-ups, he looked around the stadium silently.

His face was already covered with beads of sweat, so he stretched out his hand to wipe it, and then glanced at Agassi in the distance, muttering to himself: "At least your bald head can dissipate heat much easier than me..."

Agassi's demeanor was relatively relaxed, and he even walked to the sidelines to chat with his wife Graf.

For this much-anticipated game, in Agassi's eyes it is just one of the many Grand Slam quarter-finals in his career.

Agassi is the only active player to have won a Grand Slam and a Golden Slam.

Although Sampras holds [-] Grand Slams, he does not have a French Open championship or an Olympic gold medal. Whether it is a Grand Slam or a Golden Slam title, it has nothing to do with Sampras.

As for Agassi's wife Graf, she achieved an unprecedented honor: the annual Golden Slam.

That is to say, he won four Grand Slams and an Olympic gold medal in one year.

Although in the world of professional tennis, the honor of the Golden Slam is just the icing on the cake for the Grand Slam, it still attracts many giant players.

Both Federer and Djokovic struggled to pursue an Olympic gold medal but failed.

"Andre, you must not be careless." Graf reminded her husband in the audience, "I have observed the opponent's game, and he is very mature technically. He does not look like a 17-year-old rookie at all."

"I even think his strength has surpassed that of Zhang Depei of the same age group."

Agassi nodded: "Don't worry, there will be no weaklings who can enter the quarterfinals. I will devote myself fully from the beginning and win this game as soon as possible."

Graf seemed to have thought of something and joked: "It is said that that young man regards you as his idol. Today he finally got the opportunity to compete with his idol. He will be very excited."

"So my dear...you have to be careful about the other person's chicken blood!"

Agassi touched his bald head and wondered: Does this young man really regard me as his idol?Then why didn’t you choose and practice in last year’s Magic City Masters Cup?
But looking at Chen Ran’s post-match interview that day, it turned out he was really sincere.

He was so young, and his face was so innocent, and he didn't look like he was lying at all.With a look of doubt, Agassi walked to the court carrying his racket.

The two shook hands in a friendly manner.

"I don't think even the best screenwriter in the world could have imagined such a result." Agassi smiled and joked with Chen Ran, "When I was in Shanghai at the end of last year, many Chinese reporters gathered around me and asked some questions about you. .”

"At that time, it seemed like you had just won the Challenger League, and you defeated Isner, a newcomer from our country."

"Yes, I didn't expect that life would be so wonderful." Chen Ran also smiled, "At that time, I also didn't expect that we would meet in a Grand Slam competition two months later, and it would be the quarter-finals. "

Agassi smiled heartily: "I will definitely go all out in this game, but you have to be prepared!"

"The important thing is to participate. I am already satisfied to be able to compete on the same stage with my childhood idol." Chen Ran also said very calmly.

The referee of this game begins tossing a coin to decide who will serve first.

"Viewers, welcome to CCTV5. The game we are bringing you now is the first game of the quarter-finals of this year's Australian Open."

"The two sides are Chen Ran from China and Andre Agassi from the United States."

"Speaking of which, Chen Ran really has a connection with American players, Inesl, Russell, Roddick, and now Agassi."

A guest on the side interjected: "That's normal. After all, the United States is the strongest country in tennis. It once had the three kings of tennis."

These three kings are Sampras, Agassi, and Zhang Depei, enough to make generations of Chinese tennis people look up to them.

But now, these three heavenly kings have begun to grow old.

"Chen Ran defeated Roddick and also defeated Isner. He has already gained an advantage in the competition with the younger generation of Americans."

While Zhan Jun was speaking, he silently added in his heart: It would be great if Chen Ran could suppress the entire young generation in the United States.

"The game will start soon, and Chen Ran will start serving!" he said excitedly.

Zhan Jun has been commentating on tennis for some years. He had never imagined that a Chinese player could stand on the Grand Slam stage and compete with Agassi.

However, he also has some worries. After Chen Ran won the game and entered the quarterfinals two days ago, he seemed to have achieved his goal. His will to win seemed to have declined, and he seemed to have no fighting spirit for the next game.

But this is the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Why should you fantasize about a spot in the semi-finals?
In the history of professional tennis, there are too many new stars that flash by like shooting stars.

Who can guarantee that Chen Ran will be able to achieve such brilliant results as this Australian Open in the future.

But what is gratifying is that Chen Ran seems to be looking good today and must have slept well yesterday.

At this time, it was two o'clock in the afternoon local time in Melbourne, the sun was shining brightly, and there was heat in the air.

Chen Ran patted the tennis ball quietly, glanced at Agassi's position, and at the same time shouted in his heart: Go fight, give everything you have to create a history that can be engraved in the history of Chinese sports.

Throw the ball, bend your knees, kick on the ground, turn, and swing!

The yellow-green tennis ball streaked across the sky like a plume of lightning.

At the same time, Chen Ran rushed to the net immediately after serving the ball.

Serve the net!

Because the moment Chen Ran's racket touched the tennis ball, he realized that it was a tennis ball with excellent speed and landing.

Sure enough, Agassi, who had not yet entered the state, did not expect that Chen Ran's serve quality was so high.

"This way!"

He immediately moved his steps, jumped out to the outside, straightened his body and tried to catch the ball, but the tennis ball still went out of bounds after hitting the racket.

In the first point, Chen Ran served straight and won.

"Run away in vain!"

After Chen Ran ran to the net, he walked back to the baseline without saying a word, holding his racket and lowering his head.

That ball, even if Agassi could successfully return the ball, Chen Ran could still easily complete the volley in front of the net.

"It seems that Chen Ran's momentum is very strong. I hope he can keep going!" The reporters nearby said with emotion that the worries before the game were completely unnecessary.

Soon, Chen Ran scored three points in a row through excellent serve, and used the "love game" to completely secure serve in the first game.

"Young people are very energetic." Agassi patted his bald head.

The two immediately exchanged venues.

Does this young man really have this kind of strength, or is he just a chicken?

This is the doubt in Agassi's mind.

He has dominated the professional tennis world for so many years, and he knows very well that if Chen Ran can maintain the same level of serving, it will be difficult for him to find a chance to break serve.

Then he smiled bitterly to himself. The other party looked like he wanted to eat people. Is this the attitude of competing with an idol on the same stage?
……

(End of this chapter)