Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 269 Too cruel! (4K)

This is the first time in decades that there is no defending champion at the US Open.

On the day of the opening game, Sampras walked slowly to the center of the court holding the championship trophy and enjoyed the cheers of the audience.

Then, Chen Ran, the current world number one, and Sampras, the former world number one, shook hands with each other.

"Boy..."

Sampras said with a smile: "The last time we met was in the final of the Indian Wells Masters. Although you won the championship at that time, I really didn't expect you to become the world's number one so quickly."

"I'm honored..." Chen Ran smiled slightly, "But it's not enough to be number one in the world. I hope to taste the taste of number one at the end of the year."

In his view, being ranked No. [-] in the world is nothing, because there are too many players who have been ranked No. [-], even if it was only for a week.

But being number one at the end of the year is different. That is the sign that proves you have entered the ranks of superstars.

"The year-end number one under the age of [-]?" Sampras' tone was a little complicated. "This record, like the youngest Grand Slam champion and the Masters champion, will be difficult to be surpassed by future generations."

In 2022, Spain's new king Alcaraz became the youngest year-end number one in history at the age of nineteen. This record has been called unprecedented and will be difficult to be surpassed by future generations, not to mention that he is not yet 18 years old. number one at the end of the year.

"Fortunately, I still have fourteen Grand Slams, so he should have little chance of surpassing it." Sampras comforted himself silently.

Since there is no defending champion at this US Open, the opening match will be handed over to Chen Ran, the world's No. [-] player. In addition, his opponent is a rising star from the United States, Isner. The rate is nearly full.

When Chen Ran faced Isner again, he felt like he was in another world.

A year goes by very quickly, but it seems very long at the same time.

From the first fight to the third fight, too many things happened during this period.

The only thing that remains unchanged is the naive look of this American Khan. No wonder he will become a big fan of the leader of Sichuan University in the future.

The ESPN host at the scene explained the game: "Dear viewers, in fact, our Isner has no chance of beating Chen Ran. Doesn't this sound ridiculous? You guys, please listen to my reasons first."

"I have analyzed several games that Chen Ran has lost in the past. He is more afraid of the cannon-type serving players, even though Chen Ran has one of the top receiving levels in the world!"

"So our Isner has no chance of winning this game..."

Although he said this, he still prayed silently in his heart that the boss would not be angry because of it.

After all, from ESPN's perspective, they are extremely eager to stage a "China-US war" in the US Open finals.

How could a focal figure like Chen Ran stop in the first round?

At the same time, there is a different atmosphere in the C5 Sports live broadcast room.

"Historic moment!"

"Finally... our Chinese players are represented in the main matches of the four Grand Slams. The creator of all this comes from Chen Ran alone!"

"Of course, we believe this is just the beginning!"

"Also, let me tell you some good news!" Host Hu Litao's slightly excited voice came slowly, "Chen Ran will no longer be alone in next year's Australian Open."

"Not surprisingly, both Li Na and Zheng Jie hope to participate in next year's Australian Open qualifying tournament."

However, some fans didn't buy it and began to complain.

"Tch, what's so interesting about women's tennis? I thought you were talking about men's tennis!"

"Are these two beauties? I only watch beauties when I watch women's websites!" Some LSP fans were very candid.

"Women's basketball and women's football are not interesting to watch. The advantage of women's tennis is that there are more beauties, but the competitive level is far different!"

Because of Chen Ran's butterfly effect, Chinese fans' appreciation of tennis is increasing day by day.

The critical eye can no longer look down on the competition level of women's tennis.

"Isn't it nice to watch Chen Ran play?"

"With such gorgeous playing style, comprehensive skills, and powerful shots, why bother to watch the women's tennis and be tortured again!"

Chen Ran probably never dreamed that his appearance would actually make Chinese fans pay less attention to those golden flowers.

The winner takes all, and he unknowingly even took a lot of the resources of the women's tennis team.

At this moment, Chen Ran stared at Isner, who was stomping his feet and gearing up, and couldn't help but muttered: Brother, do you really believe what the funny host said.

Even in the first round, Chen Ran never fights unprepared, and he also specially analyzed the video of Isner's recent games.

Over the past year, this 2-meter-tall American man has made little progress in his other skills except for improving his serving skills.

Chen Ran even suspected that Isner had only been practicing his serve this year.

After all, the opponent himself knows very well that with his height and limited movement, he can only develop his serving ability.

However, in this case, Chen Ran can completely manipulate the opponent in his own serve.

As the referee tossed a coin, the U.S. Open, the final match of the four Grand Slams in 2003, officially began.

"Sure enough... the competition environment here is well-deserved!"

Chen Ran stood at the bottom line, looking at Isner who was like a tower on the opposite side, and suddenly complained in his heart.

The auditorium at the US Open is the noisiest among the four Grand Slams, as lively as a vegetable market.

However, with the start of the Chinese season in the future, the Chinese audience will be comparable to the American audience. Some are making loud calls, some are walking around casually, and some are crying children. Even the Chinese players playing at home feel like they are playing away games. .

At this point, China and the United States are two major countries that refuse to give in to each other.

Da Da Da~

The enormously tall Isner flicked a tennis ball.

He looked at Chen Ran and recalled every detail of a year ago.

At that time, Isner only thought that Chen Ran would be a good new star, but he never expected that this kid would develop so rapidly within this year.

"My serving level has improved a lot. Do I really have a chance to win today?"

"It seems that the American audience here today cheered for Chen Ran more than me, damn it!"

He was a little helpless, but he must admit that the professional tennis world is so cruel.

Isner threw the tennis ball high and then swung the racket hard.

boom!

Chen Ran watched the tennis ball fly in, bounce off the ground, and then fly away.

He didn't make any hitting action and walked to the other side of the baseline with his head lowered.

Nice serve!

Isner sent an ACE at the beginning, but this was completely within Chen Ran's expectation.

"Big man, another ACE!"

"This is the first time I've seen a player over 2 meters tall playing tennis. It's quite innovative."

"Watching him serve will definitely be a pleasure."

The US Open audience at the scene whispered, everyone was watching the excitement and didn't think it was a big deal.

They hope that this 18-year-old American native can cause some trouble for Chen Ran.

Soon, the big American man gave Chen Ran another straight serve.

The serve was as sharp as a cannon and really made the discerning American audience enjoy watching it.

"The fast and hard courts of the US Open, coupled with this big man's serve, are really at home."

In the noisy center court, Chen Ran was extremely focused.

Even though he already has a wealth of Grand Slam experience, the Center Court in Flushing is still new and unfamiliar to Chen Ran, and it takes time to adapt.

In the first game, Chen Ran lost very simply. He only scored one point with the help of Isner's second serve.

This also means that Isner's first serve success rate in the first game reached [-]%.   Immediately afterwards, Chen Ran showed his strength in his serving game.

Without losing a single point, they took away the second game with a "love game".

Chen Ran showed very calmness and faced Isner's serve with a more focused attitude.

boom!

Another serve with a speed of over 200 kilometers+ made Chen Ran directly become the opponent's background wall.

Then in the blink of an eye, Isner scored three points in a row, and basically relied on serving to solve the problem. He had no intention of forming any round ball for Chen Ran.

Soon, Isner took the lead again.

Look at the combination of serve speed and landing angle, stable and strong, this is Isner's ability.

This is simply a ball-serving machine.

Chen Ran quickly thought of Roddick. It seems that the United States is good at producing cannon-serving players in the field of tennis.

"Continue to improve your concentration!"

Chen Ran's face was as serious as water, and he also scored winning points with high-quality serves in his own service games.

His hair preservation was equally easy and seemed more freehand.

"I have to admit that today's Chen Ran is the one who plays more relaxedly!"

"I'm also worried that Isner won't be able to maintain his serving form forever."

The ESPN host said silently, and then his words came true.

boom!

Got it!

With a crisp sound, Chen Ran's body suddenly started to move, his knees straightened at the same time, and his whole body rushed out, pushing and hitting the tennis ball back.

Obviously, this is Chen Ran's most beautiful return of serve so far in Isner's first serve in this match.

Then there was no suspense. Chen Ran scored a point with a clear advantage in just a few shots.

As soon as we enter the tug-of-war stage, Chen Ran's technical advantage is too obvious.

This ball also made Isner feel some despair.

Even with such a high-quality first serve, the opponent can still score points.

Then, Chen Ran took a few steps back consciously.

Obviously, he would rather reduce the quality of receiving serves and improve the success rate of receiving serves.

This also shows that Chen Ran is not afraid of a tug-of-war with the opponent.

Of course, as a master of psychological warfare, Chen Ran also used this skill to mobilize the opponent's mentality.

No matter how powerful Isner's serve is, he is still just a young 18-year-old player. As his mentality changes, the quality of his serve will inevitably not fluctuate.

30: 15!

30: 30!

30: 40!

Break!

3: 2!

Chen Ran took the lead for the first time.

This was a game that stunned everyone.

Isner took a two-point lead in his own service game, but Chen Ran won four points in a row, almost sweeping away fallen leaves in the autumn wind, and completed the break very cleanly.

despair!

When the break occurred, this negative and decadent mood quickly spread in Isner's heart.

"Every time we play, he's different."

Isner thought helplessly.

Then, Chen Ran continued to win 3 games in a row, taking the first set with a total score of 6:2.

Huge gap, no doubt about the game.

"Our players are still too immature!"

"After a few passive games, Chen Ran quickly adapted to the opponent's serving rhythm."

"The first set took less than 30 minutes!"

Some American fans at the scene shouted directly at the host: "You stinky thing, you have a crow's mouth."

After all, the ESPN host has been nagging since the beginning of the game, saying that Isner can put maximum pressure on Chen Ran in the serve game.

The result is this?

Soon, another half hour passed.

In the second set, Chen Ran once again won the score 6-1.

It was still two breaks of serve, which made the opponent lose his temper.

After the second set, Chen Ran instinctively wanted to pick up a towel to wipe off the sweat, but when he put it on his face, he suddenly realized that he didn't seem to have any sweat, so he immediately put the towel back.

"..." After Isner saw this scene, he suddenly felt extremely depressed.

It was such a shock.

I am obviously one year older than the other person, is there such a big gap in strength?

Isner felt frustrated and wanted to smash his racket.

After the start of the third set, the course of the game seemed to be much the same as the second set.

Isner first saved his serve. Just when he expected that this set would save him some face, he was defeated by Chen Ran for six consecutive games.

Another 6 to 1!

三盘比分分别是6比2，6比1，6比1！

He only won four games in three sets, and a set needed to win five games to enter an extra set.

Isner never thought that in a Grand Slam match, he would win less than five games!

I have been working hard to participate in tournaments and challenge tournaments for nearly half a year, and found that the gap between him and Chen Ran not only did not narrow, but widened.

Such a one-sided game also made the audience shake their heads in disappointment.

Many American fans simply left the stadium holding popcorn.

This kind of game is so cruel that it is almost unbearable to watch.

"As expected of the No. [-] seed and No. [-] favorite! Our young man seems to need a lot of hard work!" The host had to comfort Isner, who was still standing on the court in a daze.

To be treated so brutally at a Grand Slam level is indeed a bit cruel for a young guy.

However, the C5 host said something else: "Isner beat our Chinese players throughout the challenge. It seems that Chinese tennis still has a long way to go!"

……

(End of this chapter)