Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 226 The Fateful Showdown
"Xinwen Lianbo" spent nearly 2 minutes reporting the news that Chen Ran entered the French Open finals.

In addition, C4 International Channel and C5 Sports Channel also spent a lot of time reporting Chen Ran’s news.

Nike branches across the country also immediately hung up huge posters of Chen Ran.

The name Chen Ran was mentioned countless times throughout the day.

For many parents in China, letting their children learn tennis has become a trend.

This is the influence of role models. Chen Ran single-handedly made this sport popular.

The same tempting record is placed in front of Chen Ran, whether he can break the record of the youngest Grand Slam champion created by Zhang Depei.

At the French Open again, another high-spirited 17-year-old Chinese boy.

14 years ago, Zhang Depei shocked the professional tennis world, and now Chen Ran has followed in his footsteps, and even today Zhang Depei is still Chen Ran's coach.

So does it mean that there is God's will in the dark, and Zhang Depei's disciples will break the record set by him?

Obviously this is the best opportunity.

Who can guarantee that young Chen Ran can continue his miracle in the French Open at Wimbledon and the US Open?

As a result, many Chinese media focused unprecedented attention on another semi-final.

World No. [-] and Australian Open champion Ferrero plays against Swiss star Federer.

At this moment, Ferrero is at the peak of his career, and his reputation far exceeds that of Federer today.

In addition to the heavy Australian Open championship trophy, Ferrero also won the Monte Carlo Masters championship for two consecutive years.

After 2009, the Monte Carlo Masters was the only non-mandatory Masters tournament, and its gold content dropped significantly.

But in today's era, the Monte Carlo Masters is one of the most valuable Masters tournaments and is known as the weathervane of the French Open.

Ferrero's ability to win the Monte Carlo Masters twice in a row is enough to prove his outstanding strength on clay courts.

The whole world is looking forward to Ferrero and Chen Ran joining forces in the French Open final to recreate the scene at the Madrid Masters.

However, a spoiler emerged.

Federer, who is full of arrogance, does not want to be regarded as a tool by the outside world.

In the much-anticipated second semi-final, Federer also showed his extraordinary competitive status, dragging Ferrero into a desperate situation with one extraordinary shot after another.

The charm of competitive sports is undoubtedly evident at this moment.

As the spectators at the Philippe Chartier Stadium continued to scream in surprise, Federer, with his sharp forehand, elusive single-handed return, changeable ball path, and gorgeous attacks, continued to challenge the world's number one Ferre. Luo attacked.

In a fierce battle that lasted for nearly four hours, Federer defeated Ferrero 3-1 and locked in another finals spot.

Chen Ran and Federer, one is 17 years old and the other is 22 years old, they both entered the Grand Slam final for the first time in their careers.

What surprised the fans even more was that the way this player from Switzerland played was so beautiful and entertaining. Even picky Paris fans couldn't find any fault with his elegant style of play.

The unbridled imagination of hitting the ball also made the audience excited.

In fact, Federer has been regarded as a potential newcomer by the professional tennis community in the past few years. He has comprehensive skills and talents. However, until the age of 22, he had not entered any Grand Slam finals, while Hewitt, who was in the same year as him, had already won two. A grand slam.

In comparison, Federer's performance was indeed disappointing.

Some people in the industry even asserted that it is unrealistic to have both practicality and aesthetics in this intense sport of tennis, and advised Federer to change his playing style as soon as possible.

But Federer still insisted on himself, and in this French Open, he finally broke through the inner demons of the semi-finals and appeared on the stage of the Grand Slam final for the first time.

"So my opponent in the final will be Federer, not Ferrero." Chen Ran sat quietly in the audience with a stern look on his face.

His opponent in the first Grand Slam final of his career was the future giant Federer.

In fact, from Chen Ran's perspective, although Ferrero is the world's number one clay court player, he is still easier to deal with than Federer.

Because a player like Federer with giant-level potential has unlimited possibilities on the court. You can't even accurately assess the true strength of Federer, who is about to soar to the sky. It may be one step at a time in each game.

What's more, Federer's strength on clay courts has never been weak.

For a long time, he was only the second player in the French Open on clay behind Nadal, who was the only "King of Clay" throughout the ages.

In other times, Federer might have dominated the French Open.

So... because of my relationship, the world of men's professional tennis has changed beyond recognition.

At this moment, when Federer was celebrating happily after eliminating Ferrero and entering the French Open final, the camera lens was also focused on Chen Ran in the audience for the first time.

It's just that Chen Ran's face was serious, as if he was thinking about something, and he didn't even notice that he appeared on the big screen.

"Why doesn't Chen Ran look good?"

"Shouldn't Federer be easier to deal with than Ferrero?"

Because of Chen Ran, many Chinese viewers are also paying great attention to another French Open semi-final.

But when they saw Chen Ran's slightly serious face on live TV, they couldn't help but wonder: Why is Chen Ran's face so solemn?

You must know that just now when the CCTV host was chatting with the guests, there was still a bit of joy. Fortunately, Chen Ran's opponent in the final was not No. 1 Ferrero on clay.

So Chen Ran's behavior was a bit abnormal.

I'll be sure to ask about it when I get the chance.

The audience also noticed Chen Ran appearing on the big screen. Some guys jumped up and down excitedly and waved their arms to greet him.

But what was somewhat surprising was that Chen Ran just glanced at himself on the big screen indifferently and continued to be lost in thought without giving any response.

"Holy shit, this guy is so pretentious!" At this time, Chen Hei on the Internet got angry after seeing this scene. "They were just thinking about how their opponents in the final would play, and they didn't make any exaggerated moves. You guys, Chen Hei, who are hiding in dark corners, wouldn't even let this go?" Chen Ran's fans immediately launched a counterattack.

Chen Ran had no intention of paying attention to the exchanges between Chen Hei and the fans on the Internet. He left the stadium with his team in silence and returned to his residence.

What is Federer's weakness?Especially on clay courts.

Before Djokovic came of age, Federer's dominance in tennis was unquestionable, with the only exception being on clay courts.

Federer's backhand is a relatively weak link, but it is only compared with those giant players.

On clay courts, Nadal can use high-speed super topspin to suppress Federer's backhand. This is his only shortcoming.

Just because you don't have an obvious weakness doesn't mean you can't defeat your opponent.

But you must show stronger strength, use your own advantages and the opponent's advantages to engage in head-to-head confrontation, have a strong dialogue, and then the one with better skills will win.

"Chen, I am also surprised by your opponent in the final." Zhang Depei also shrugged helplessly, "Many combat plans before were centered around Ferrero. Now we must adjust the plan!"

"I have observed Federer's games. If he is in good condition, he will be very scary, just like last year's year-end Masters Cup, Federer eliminated Agassi in straight sets."

"But his problem is that he cannot maintain his best competitive condition for a long time. This is your biggest opportunity!"

He patiently made various analyzes for Chen Ran: "As for you...your biggest characteristic is that in a long tennis match, the ups and downs of the state are not big, and you can always maintain your competitive state to a relatively good level." Ideal level.”

Another point is that Chen Ran's excellent mental quality and strong ability to withstand pressure make him nothing like a 17-year-old player.

Even Zhang Depei himself admitted that Chen Ran is more mature than himself at the same age.

"Yes, I think so too." Chen Ran nodded, "First of all, I need to have enough rest to ensure that I have sufficient physical fitness for the finals, so that I can be in an excellent state from beginning to end."

"The most important thing is that when you shift gears and push yourself to the limit, you are not afraid of Federer, who is also in extraordinary form."

Until this moment, Chen Ran finally started to look forward to the French Open final with Federer.

From Nadal to Costa to Moya, when Chen Ran thought he would face the fourth Spaniard, Federer walked up to him gracefully and told him with a smile: Chen Ran, your opponent in the final is I.

Both of them will compete for the first Grand Slam in their careers.

"Chen, I have a hunch!" Zhang Depei suddenly spoke.

"What?" Chen Ran came back to his senses and asked.

"You and Roger may be in a very fierce competitive relationship for a long time in the future. This is my feeling." Zhang Depei said leisurely.

Chen Ran's heart trembled slightly.

Once a top player and now a top coach, Zhang Depei's sixth sense is too keen.

"Why do you feel this way?" Chen Ran pretended to be "surprised." "Aren't they Grand Slam winners like Ferrero, Safin, and Hewitt? Even I think Roddick is more of a threat than Federer." so big."

Zhang Depei frowned and said: "It stands to reason, but I just have this feeling. It stands to reason that these people are more difficult to deal with, but I know that for some top players, they suddenly overcame their inner demons at some point. , if you break through the bottleneck, you will be out of control.”

"Coach, you have rich Grand Slam and tour experience, your hunch must be somewhat reasonable." Chen Ran replied with a smile.

Chen Ran knows Federer better than Zhang Depei.

Overcoming the inner demons of the semi-finals, and soaring into the sky after breaking through the bottleneck, this sentence is really appropriate to describe Federer.

Seven consecutive Grand Slam finals!

This is the brilliant record created by Federer in his previous life after breaking through the inner demons of the top four.

In other words, in the few years after Federer soared to the sky, the award of Grand Slam runner-up never existed in his cabinet of honors.

Entering seven Grand Slam finals and winning them all, what a terrifying record!

Federer will either stop in the top 8 or the top 4, but as long as he reaches the final, he will definitely win.

His first Grand Slam runner-up was achieved when he met Nadal, the king of clay.

So in this time and space, Federer, stimulated by Chen Ran's butterfly effect, broke through the semi-finals curse a month early, because originally all this would happen at Wimbledon a month later.

In this French Open final, Chen Ran will face Federer, who has most likely undergone a transformation.

But not only was he unafraid of it, he was even excited.

Perhaps this French Open final will be the beginning of the "fatal showdown" between the two of them.

……

At the same time, enthusiastic Chinese netizens also launched a heated discussion on the final showdown of the French Open final.

"Steady, steady, the opponent is not Ferrero, but Federer. Thank you Brother Fei for giving us the first Grand Slam championship in Chinese tennis!"

"Well done to the Swiss man. He helped Chen Ran eliminate his most difficult opponent, Ferrero. Next time I come to China, I'll treat you to a drink!"

Unlike Chen Ran's solemn mood, most of the uninformed Chinese fans were very optimistic.

Of course, some Chen Hei saw that Chen Ran was so lucky, so they began to express different opinions sourly.

"You guys know nothing, the Swiss are better than Chen Ran!"

"Swiss brother Wawrinka ends Chen Ran's unbeaten tour record, then Swiss brother Federer will also end Chen Ran's unbeaten record in Grand Slams!"

"In the future, when Chen Ran goes to a Swiss bank to deposit money, the other party will definitely arrange a VIP account for him."

……

(End of this chapter)