Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 283 The intensifying “goat” dispute

"The head-to-head record is 3-0, am I going to become Chen Ran's manservant?"

At this moment, Federer's heart was also full of bitterness.

Even his compatriot Wawrinka won a match against Chen Ran, but he didn't even win, which made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Chen, I really hope I can beat you once." When the two shook hands, Federer still showed an elegant smile.

How about I be more generous and let you win a few times on the tour in the future, but leave the Grand Slam winners to me!

Other than that, the end of the year is mine and the Olympics are mine.

Chen Ran murmured silently in his heart and smiled slightly: "There are still two important events this year. If we can meet... maybe you can win next time, but next time I hope to win."

Federer also understood Chen Ran's subtext. What he meant was that he could lose the Paris Masters, but he must win at the end of the year.

What a stingy guy!

He smiled wryly.

"I wish you good luck in the final." Federer smiled lightly, "It seems that people who beat me in Grand Slams have good results in the end."

"I'd like to lend you some good words." Chen Ran also smiled.

After 6 games, he finally reached the Grand Slam final for the second time.

The ESPN host at the scene didn't care about Federer's feelings at all. He grabbed Chen Ran and shouted to the camera: "Andy, did you see? Chen Ran has already made an appointment for the US Open finals battle between China and the United States. You’re the only one left!”

It seems that the whole world is looking forward to the meeting of these two people, and Chen Ran's victory is what everyone expected.

If a large portion of the audience supported Agassi in the previous quarter-finals, then most of the audience in this semi-final supported Chen Ran.

In his previous life, Federer was the darling of Flushing Park, but in this life, because he has not yet won a Grand Slam, he cannot attract the attention of the arrogant American audience.

As soon as the host finished speaking, the audience began to boo.

There were even some cheerful guys jumping around, it was so lively.

These Americans obviously know how to attract attention with maximum topicality.

The ESPN host continued the interview: "Chen Ran, this is your second time entering a Grand Slam final, and you will also be the youngest competitor in the history of the US Open. What do you want to say about this?"

"I'm honored. This is the stage that every tennis player dreams of." Chen Ran calmed down his excitement and said slowly, "We have trained hard and gone through hard battles one after another, just to dream. We can make it to the finals.”

"Of course, I will not be satisfied with this. I hope to go further and hope that there will be many opportunities to reach the Grand Slam finals in the future."

This is Chen Ran's declaration to the outside world that fans all over the world should be prepared to appear in Grand Slam finals frequently.

You will see him frequently for a long time to come.

"A very domineering declaration!" the host responded enthusiastically, "This is definitely a moment worth remembering in the history of men's tennis. The 17-year-old star has already reached the Grand Slam finals twice."

"Dear viewers, let us look forward to the finals."

Chen Ran shook hands with the host symbolically, then walked around the venue, clapped to the audience who supported him, and then walked to the media area where Chinese reporters gathered.

After he reached the US Open finals, he was bound to receive a live broadcast from CCTV.

"Hello Chen Ran, what do you want to say to the national audience at this moment?"

"I hope everyone can cheer for me in the finals." Chen Ran seemed very calm, "I still need one game to complete my goal."

"Definitely, we believe that the ratings for the next game will reach a new high!"

However, the host of CCTV was already excited and incoherent. In addition, he was responsible for commentating on tennis events, so he said: "If you win the US Open, does it mean that you have distanced yourself from other Chinese athletes and become a Chinese athlete?" The unquestionable goat in sports history."

"This..." Chen Ran pondered for a while and fell into a brief silence.

Since the word "goat" came out, netizens have expressed their opinions and had a heated and long-lasting discussion.

Now Chen Ran, who has won a Grand Slam, has also entered the current discussion sequence, but he is not convincing enough.

So if you have two Grand Slams, do you qualify?

In her previous life, after winning two Grand Slams, Li Na entered the ranks of the Chinese sports presidents, but she basically hovered between 3-5, while Yao Ming and Liu Xiang always occupied the top two.

But this is women's tennis. If it were changed to men's tennis, could it be improved to a higher level?

At this time, Yao Ming is still preparing for the Men's Basketball Asian Championships, and the NBA's second season has not yet begun; as for Liu Xiang, he has not yet won the Olympic gold medal.

In the current competition among these three sports giants, Chen Ran is considered to be in the leading position.

But this kind of competition is long-term, and it cannot be said that Chen Ran has a guaranteed victory at the moment.

The NBA behind Yao Ming is the most successful business league in the world. Its influence and promotion capabilities are unparalleled. Track and field is the mother of sports. Although the 110-meter hurdles is not as good as the 100 meters and 200 meters, it is also a popular event in the entire track and field. .

Chen Ran's advantage is that he has four Grand Slams in a year and one at the end of the year. As long as his record is excellent, he can have enough exposure from beginning to end within a year.

What if Chen Ran is placed in the history of Chinese sports and compared with those historical Olympic champions and world champions?

It's hard to say in terms of honors, but Chen Ran has an advantage in popularity by leveraging the influence of tennis itself. Chen Ran has a Grand Slam, and now he is guaranteed to be runner-up in a Grand Slam. This has made countless sports media discover the huge topic.

If you have a topic, you can get click-through rate and viewership rate, which can bring a steady stream of wealth.

Because of Chen Ran's appearance, a lot of tennis-related industries have grown around him.

Chen Ran also seems to have acquiesced in this situation, because China's tennis industry is still very weak and needs soil for growth.

This time, when Chen Ran was asked by the excited CCTV host, he did not choose to keep a low profile and avoid it.

"I think I should be a candidate, but it is more appropriate to leave this issue to netizens for discussion!"

This also means that Chen Ran admits from the front that he can be regarded as a candidate.

The reporters surrounding Chen Ran were also excited. There was another big news to write about.

In addition, in Chen Ran's opinion, one championship plus a guaranteed runner-up can be candidates, but what about two championships?

Can Chen Ran really aspire to win the US Open at Roddick's home court?

At the thought of this, the hearts of those reporters boiled.

The CCTV host was obviously too happy, so he said: "Okay, we are here to wish you win the US Open and become the goat of our Chinese sports world!"

Is this a boomerang?

Chen Ran sighed slightly.

Chen Ran came up with the word "goat", and then asked IMG agency and Nike to promote it together. As a result, it aroused huge influence and topic at the turn of the century.

The main reason is that there are too few entertainment activities for people in this era.

……

However, Chen Ran still ignored the media's ability to add fuel to the fire.

When Chen Ran finished the interview and returned to the locker room, the CCTV interview remarks, fueled by the popularity of his second Grand Slam final, completely detonated the Chinese Internet.

The "goat" originally lasted for a month and reached a climax in the early autumn of September.

"With a Grand Slam champion and a guaranteed runner-up, Chen Ran believes that he has entered the 'goat' candidate in the Chinese sports world."

"This time it is a positive response, witnessed by CCTV! Win another Grand Slam and lock in the number one player in Chinese sports history!"

Some words were mentioned by Chen Ran, and some words were not publicly responded to by Chen Ran, but they were still exaggerated and publicized by reporters who needed the topic.

But there are fans of other sports who are not convinced.

"It's crazy!"

"Bah, you don't have to be an Olympic champion to compete for goat?"

"Don't speak too early, be careful about losing in the final!"

Of course, there are also some sports fans who don't usually pay much attention to tennis and are a little curious.

"When is the final, the day after tomorrow? Then let's go and see how Chen Ran is doing."

"But he is still too young. It is easy to offend some people in the sports circle by saying this! It is said that the water in the sports circle is very deep..."

"Chen Ran is not from the same group as them, nor is he part of the system, so what are you afraid of?"

"We just like athletes with this kind of personality!"

As the initiator of the heated discussion, Chen Ran perfectly fulfilled the principle of "show off and run away".

After being interviewed by CCTV that day, he stated that he would not respond to any more questions and would devote himself to preparing for the US Open finals that was about to begin.

In the other semifinal, America's local darling Roddick defeated Ferrero 3-1, locking in the remaining spot in the final.

The "China-US war" that both China and the United States have longed for has finally come true.

Roddick, a happy young man, even shouted excitedly: "Chen, I fulfilled my promise, and this time I did not break the promise!"

The US Open final will also be the fourth meeting between Chen Ran and Roddick. The previous record was 2-1.

More importantly, just like the French Open, whoever wins this US Open final will be ranked No. 1 in the world, and the winner will most likely remain No. 1 in the world until the year-end finals.

This also made the popularity of this US Open final unprecedentedly high.

Chen Ran and Roddick are both "one slam" players now, which also means that one person will definitely break the "one slam" curse in this finals, and they will complete this achievement within one year.

In addition, it has been five years since a player won more than two Grand Slams in one year, and this gap period will also end at this year's US Open.

……

(End of this chapter)