Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 171 Lively interview, Sharapova wins for the first time
Chen Ran found that he was very popular with the children and the young players at the Nickelodeon School.

He was surrounded by enthusiastic people.

Even the American media, which has always been arrogant and critical, are very friendly and well-intentioned towards him.

Could it be that they were defeated?
Or maybe there is a relationship with IMG strategizing behind the scenes.

Another reason is that Americans, who have always thought highly of themselves, actually have a favorable impression of those Chinese athletes who have excellent performance and are humorous, especially in the sports that attract more attention from them.

Yao Ming is like this, and so is Chen Ran.

"Chen Ran, I didn't expect you to be quite popular!" Sharapova flipped up her blond hair and then joked, "The new Australian Open champion is not even as popular as you."

"You seem to be the only one here whose popularity is comparable to American players like Agassi and Roddick."

"Because I'm so handsome!" Chen Ran put his hands in his pockets and crossed his legs and said.

Sharapova: "..."

This man is really shameless.

After the media event, Chen Ran returned to his hotel in a special car arranged by the organizing committee.

After the lottery was officially announced, it was impossible for Chen Ran not to have any thoughts in his heart.

Similarly, IMG also hopes that Chen Ran can do his best and perform well, at least to break into the semi-finals, right?

IMG's connections in China are not limited, and it has already convinced CCTV to broadcast Chen Ran's entire game, starting from the first round.

You must know that in the Indian Wells Masters, CCTV only started live broadcasting from the top [-].

Although the clay court season is about to start, the prestigious Barcelona Open and Miami Masters are just over a week apart.

This will make many top players have some other thoughts.

Some people's minds have indeed flown to the clay court, thinking of going to Europe as soon as possible to gain points.

But from Chen Ran's perspective, he has no plans to participate in the Barcelona Open.

He has no shortage of points or bonuses, so there is no point in participating in the ATP500 tournament.

This also means that Chen Ran can go all out in the Miami Masters, since he will have plenty of rest time afterwards.

The day passed by in a flash, and under the expectation of everyone, Chen Ran ushered in the first competition day.

Challenger, Isner.

"I think I have a chance to defeat Chen Ran!"

"In the Magic City Challenge, I won one set and broke serve, while the two sets I lost were in tie-breaks!"

"In the past six months, I have tempered myself in the NCAA. I feel that my strength has been greatly improved!"

"I'm even one year older than Chen Ran, why can't I beat him?"

Isner, who has always thought highly of himself, found that even his own country's media believed that he was giving Chen Ran his life, which made him very dissatisfied.

Any player who can grow into a world-class player has pride in his heart.

The more he was looked down upon, the more he wanted to create miracles.

Especially in American sports culture, dark horse miracles have always been highly praised.

"I believe that it will not be easy for Chen Ran to break serve in his own serve game."

Facing the US media's cynical attitude, Isner spoke confidently.

Some Chinese reporters who were looking for news asked: "Mr. Isner, do you still remember the thrilling finals last year?"

"Remember, of course I remember!" Isner suddenly became interested. "To be honest, I didn't expect Chen Ran to soar after that game. He is now a role model for our players born after 85."

"We are telling the world that players born after 85 have also made their mark in men's professional tennis."

"Mr. Isner, it seems you haven't changed careers yet, right?" the Chinese reporter continued to ask.

"Yes, I am still a student and will receive a scholarship from the NCAA." Isner said frankly, "I can have ATP points, but because of NCAA regulations, the tournament bonuses I receive will be temporarily deposited with the ATP. "

When he officially turns professional one day, he will receive a one-time bonus from the ATP.

"If I can beat Chen Ran this time, then I will decide to turn professional immediately. If I can't win, I may need to continue training in the NCAA." He expressed his inner thoughts very honestly.

"Of course I think my current strength is enough to gain a foothold in professional tennis."

There is no doubt that Isner is indeed the best player among the American generation born in 85.

However, when Chen Ran attended the press conference, the number of journalists and media reporters interviewed increased by more than ten times.

With three floors inside and three floors outside, the small press conference hall was almost packed to the brim.

Reporters from both China and the United States are full of interest in Chen Ran.

"Chen, can you tell us your goal for this competition? Semi-finals, finals, or double crown?" an American reporter asked.

Chen Ran said very calmly: "Win the next game first and enter the top 32."

That's it?

"Haven't you set goals for yourself?"

Chen Ran smiled softly: "You know... there is a symptom in the sports world called 'championship syndrome'. My current physical condition is still a bit tired, so I dare not set too ambitious goals for myself."

"As long as you don't get eliminated in the first round, it's not bad."

Oh my God, you are the guarantee of box office and ratings, but...

Is this a smoke bomb or is there another reason?
However, the phenomenon of "championship sequelae" does exist and is accepted by most people.

Athletes are not robots and will always have ups and downs.

"What do you think of Isner? You have a record of playing against each other." The American reporter continued to ask.

"What do you think? Even if I stand on a chair, I can't even look at him at eye level. This guy is too tall." Chen Ran exclaimed, "I hate taking photos with him, so can this game be an exception?"

After hearing this, all the reporters burst into laughter.

In fact, Chen Ran's deepest impression of Isner was that more than ten years later in the United States, this guy openly declared that he was a fan of the leader.

This requires a lot of courage in the sports world, and it also means that this guy still has quite a personality.

Immediately afterwards, Chen Ran continued: "Isner's serve is very good, which is a test for my receiving skills."

Another American reporter asked: "Hello, I'm from Time Magazine. Mr. Chen, what do you think about your appearance in Time Magazine?"

"According to past practice, only Asian superstars can appear on the cover of Time Magazine!" "I'm very happy, but I'm also a little dissatisfied!" Chen Ran's expression became very serious, as if he was teaching the other party a lesson.

The American reporter looked puzzled and waited for the other party's explanation.

"Your cover can definitely make me more handsome." Chen Ran added, "I feel that my image on the cover of Time Magazine is completely below my average level."

It was for this...

The American reporter wiped the sweat from his forehead and was left speechless by Chen Ran.

"Chen Ran, do you know that you edged out Jay Chou?" A Chinese reporter took advantage of this and asked, "What do you think of this?"

Damn it, here we go again to sow discord.

As soon as these words came out, Chen Ran guessed what kind of medicine the other party was selling.

How should I answer?
Be more modest or more aggressive.

Or explain it from another angle?

"I had nothing to do with it because I was not the one who made the decision."

Chen Ran pondered for a while and then continued: "But from my perspective, Chinese music should continue to work harder. Tennis is a global sport, and Chinese movies have also gone global. Only Chinese music cannot compete with East Asia. out!"

What I said is not a provocation, right?To be honest, I am such an upright person.

For example, some singers in later generations often like to advertise "world tour concerts", but if you look closely, even at overseas concerts, all the people watching are Chinese.

Can this be called "World Tour Concert"? It should be called "World Chinese Tour Concert".

The reason why you can afford a "world tour concert" is actually thanks to the fact that there are Chinese people all over the world.

Boom~
Sure enough, the eyes of those reporters were shining with excitement!

Big news again!

Not long ago, Chen Ran criticized a bunch of "Asian kings" and "Asian queens" for not being worthy of their names. This time, he criticized Chinese music again.

You want to break out of East Asia!
At first glance, why does it sound inferior to the national football team?After all, the slogan shouted by the national football team is to break out of Asia.

"Okay, it's time for me to prepare for the competition." Chen Ran ended the interview with a nod.

The densely packed crowd of reporters who packed the hall would not give everyone a chance to ask questions.

Chen Ran retreated, but the reporters knew there was big news again.

American reporters are not interested in the topic of Chinese music at all, but some Chinese reporters are gearing up one by one, thinking about how to write news.

They love Chen Ran so much and will make some big news every once in a while.

However, some sports reporters showed some concern. They were not worried about Chen Ran offending others, but worried about whether these off-field news would affect Chen Ran's condition.

Chen Ran's luck in the Miami Masters this time was very good, much better than in Indian Wells.

They hope that Chen Ran will continue to achieve great results.

It doesn’t have to be consecutive championships, but if you can enter the semi-finals or even the finals, it can also have a good topic effect.

Sunshine double crown?

Even the most optimistic people dare not imagine it.

……

Under normal circumstances, the match between Chen Ran and Isner would start in two hours.

But tennis matches are often postponed because the end time of the previous player's match is uncertain.

After Chen Ran returned to the locker room, he took a short rest and then came to the court.

This is an affiliated stadium that can accommodate approximately 8000 spectators.

Clayton Park Central Court, which can accommodate 1 spectators, gave priority to local players Agassi and Roddick.

Agassi, the tennis king of a generation, has entered the end of his career.

Whether it was last year's end of the year, this year's Australian Open, or the Indian Wells Masters, Agassi always watched every game and missed every game.

Arranging Agassi's game at Center Court is also popular, and fans in the United States are also willing to support this superstar.

At this moment, Chen Ran was a little anxious waiting.

The game ahead of him went on for too long.

His scheduled game time has been delayed again and again, delayed by more than an hour.

Not only him, but his opponent Isner also showed anxiety.

This is a WTA match between Sharapova and a player from Spain.

The two sides were playing very anxiously, and the game had already reached the third set.

"Is her voice really not hoarse?" Chen Ran couldn't help but touch his ears.

From beginning to end, Sharapova's screams never stopped.

Even her opponent once complained to the referee, saying that Sharapova's screams had seriously affected her performance.

In the final tie-break of the third set, Sharapova, who worked hard and screamed, finally won the game with difficulty.

Then, the little furry girl covered her face with her hands, showing excitement.

She finally won her first Masters victory!

Chen Ran, who was off the field, rubbed his ears expressionlessly.

Finally it's my turn to play.

Not far away, Isner was warming up, looking eager to try.

Okay, let me see how much your serving cannon has improved in the past six months?

At the very least, you'll be a good target for practice receiving.

……

　Thanks to Maxim Xiaomianqiu, Bindog Noodles, and Fengqingyundan056 for the tip.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)