Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 380: Conquering Rome, a key step for "Master Jin"

PS: I went back to the countryside during the Chinese New Year and there was no internet, so I bought a laptop to enable hotspot coding. After all, I’m not used to writing on my phone, so I didn’t expect to fall down on the first day.

In addition, I wish everyone a happy Spring Festival, and red envelopes will be distributed in the group at 7pm!

……

Chen Ran knew very well that Nadal at this moment was far from reaching the peak of the "King of Clay", but even so, he still found it very difficult to deal with.

After two games, he felt more physically exhausted than his opponent, even his breathing was a few breaths faster than his opponent's.

Nadal was bouncing on the spot at the moment.

He had just equalized the score, and his momentum was on his side.

Chen Ran also stretched his muscles, trying to improve his concentration.

This has already reached the finals, and he doesn't want to give up easily.

Da Da Da~

He looked intently at Nadal, who was shooting the ball.

The host slammed the table excitedly.

On the other side, Nadal lowered his head and paced back and forth on the baseline, muttering: "Chen Ran's volleying skills in front of the net are so perfect, so we should try to avoid setting the location of the decisive battle in front of the net."

"The other party must be very tired, right? I still have physical strength!"

The audience had a great time watching it.

This made the host sigh like this.

Even the king of clay at his peak, his serving level was outside the fifteenth place, around twenty.

Nadal is not a tall player, and even on clay courts, the tennis ball only slows down after it bounces off the ground, but it does not slow down when flying in the air.

Nadal smiled bitterly, and then gave a thumbs up to Chen Ran opposite.

Whether on red clay, hard court or grass, spectators can often see Chen Ran's magical strokes.

"Well, that must be the case."

The current score is 6-5, and the score in the twelfth inning once again became 40-all.

I saw Chen Ran running back and hitting the ball straight into the dead center in the distance.

As Nadal expected, Chen Ran adjusted the state of the serving end in time and scored two more points in a row.

"Two such young guys can stage such a wonderful clay court duel."

Compared with other players' miraculous moves, Chen Ran often performs the scene of catching up on the court and hitting the ball with his back behind his crotch.

In almost every ball, the multi-shot stalemate between the two sides lasted for more than ten shots.

"I wonder if Chen Ran often practices this kind of hitting during training?"

"Fortunately, Nadal's serve is not very good, which makes him use up more energy to maintain his serve."

Nadal was obviously a little frustrated. He missed the break point just one step away.

"Looks like it's going to be another tiebreaker..."

The crisp sound of hitting the ball echoed throughout the entire stadium.

He had tried his best to lengthen his body and arms and try his best to catch the ball, but he still missed some distance.

Therefore, in Chen Ran's matches with Nadal, he was rarely served ace or served straight by his opponent.

The more anxious the moment, the more terrifying Nadal's fighting spirit becomes.

The landing point of the ball is also very tricky, which can keep the opponent players out of reach.

As a Spaniard, he has the unyielding will of a matador.

Chen Ran is also very aware of Nadal's strengths and weaknesses.

"Sometimes I'd rather be facing someone who can serve like a cannon."

The two sides entered the tiebreaker again.

"Has anything similar happened in history?"

He flipped up his wild long hair, then half-bent his body and stared at Chen Ran.

Chen Ran also saved his break point with this ball.

In the three finals games, set tie-breaks are also very rare, which shows how intense this game is.

Chen Ran knew that every next ball would be an endless war of attrition.

On the contrary, Chen Ran only needs to adjust his serving state above the average level in time to put huge pressure on the opponent.

Chen Ran's shot left Nadal helpless while standing in front of the net trying to intercept.

"nice shot!"

"How else could he use this method as a regular way to score?"

Soon, the two sides started running around the court again as in the previous two sets.

"I even feel that these two are more powerful than the clay court players who have won the French Open in history!"

"The tiebreaker advantage is still on my side!"

Chen Ran indeed felt that his physical fitness had been exhausted again and again in this game.

This lengthy clay court duel was simply more tiring than the five-set Grand Slam battles on hard courts and grass courts.

But he is still extremely eager to win this final.

"I will conquer Rome!"

He had a hunch that as long as he won the Rome Masters championship, the great career leading to the "Golden Master" would be smooth sailing.

Bang bang bang~

He patted his sore thigh without any concealment, and then started to serve.

boom!

The yellow-green tennis ball hit the soft red soil hard, leaving a deep mark.

At the same time, rolling beads of sweat dripped on the red soil, and then bloomed everywhere like petals.

ACE!

Chen Ran hit his fifth ACE in the game, while Nadal only had two.

Although the ball speed is much slower on clay courts, it is not difficult for players to serve ACE balls.

The impact point, the rotation speed, and the flight speed of the tennis ball before it rebounds.

If you do the above points, it is still very possible to send an ACE ball.

After the first serve is scored, the two sides directly exchange serves.

"What time is it now?"

In the C5 sports live broadcast room, the host lowered his head and glanced at his watch. "It's almost five o'clock, but I don't feel sleepy at all now."

"The two of them have been fighting from 2 o'clock in the morning until now."

"It's really hard for tennis players."

While talking, the two people began to fight with each other to the extreme, using all kinds of martial arts.

Forehand and backhand shots, chip shots, and half-volley shots.

Like Nadal, Chen Ran also tried to put pressure on Nadal with strong topspin, even though the speed of his hitting was slightly inferior to Nadal.

Both sides obviously know how to maximize their defense when they can't be killed in one shot.

"These two young men are so patient!"

"God, are they really only eighteen?"

Generally speaking, young people in the tennis world rely on their youth and weight to beat their opponents to death with one shot.

But both Chen Ran and Nadal were very patient, and they continued to make arrangements and set up tactics during the game.

"I can tell you that these two guys will dominate the clay courts for the next ten years."

"As long as neither of them is injured, at least 80% of the future French Open champions will be divided between them!"

The Italian host at the scene has been commentating on clay court matches for most of his life, but he has never seen such a wonderful duel.

At this moment, the score of the tie-break has reached 7-7.

The two sides completed a "mini break" for each other, but still refused to give in.

Da Da Da~

I saw Chen Ran running at high speed, then sliding from a long distance, swinging the racket and hitting the ball "outside in".

That is to say, the ball is hit at a very small angle from the sideline outside the court, and the return point lands very deep on the sideline on the same side.

This is an incredible fairy ball.

8 is better than 7!

The whole audience burst into applause.

Chen Ran once again got the match point of the whole game.

However, due to the excessive exertion just now and the fact that his physical fitness had reached its bottleneck, Chen Ran slipped and fell to the ground, feeling cramps in his legs.

Chen Ran immediately covered his calf and sat on the ground with gritted teeth.

You can't call a medical timeout now unless you give up the next point.

Chen Ran got up with difficulty, stood there and shook his calf. After feeling the pain dissipate, he signaled to continue the game.

In terms of willpower, he will not lose to the Spanish matador opposite him.

Next was Nadal's serve, which was good news for Chen Ran, who had just cramped.

He doesn't need to strain his calves to serve.

"It's match time..."

"How's his injury?"

Nadal took a careful look.

He was not sure if this was his chance, but Chen Ran's focused expression and murderous eyes still put him under great pressure.

The hit just now greatly boosted Chen Ran's morale.

One shot...

Mistake!

Second serve!

Chen Ran actually attacked directly.

He knew that by attacking on the second serve, he could disrupt Nadal's layout.

After Chen Ran seized the opportunity, he decisively released a small ball.

Nadal was well prepared and rushed directly to the net.

He had been guarding against this move.

However, the audience exclaimed in unison.

A familiar scene happened again.

After the tennis ball landed, it jumped directly back to Chen Ran's half.

This is a shot with strong backspin, and it is also a trick that Chen Ran often uses to win unexpectedly.

He also jokingly called this shot a "zero slice."

As long as it falls to the ground, it is almost impossible to solve.

Unless you hit the ball back before it hits the ground.

9 is better than 7!

Chen Ran finally won the tie-break in the third set.

He lay directly on the court as if exhausted, not caring that the red soil was stained with his already soaked jersey.

Won!

Conquer Rome!

Chen Ran completed a crucial step towards the achievement of "Master Jin".

Today, he still has Monte Carlo, Hamburg and Cincinnati.

But next year, the Hamburg Masters will be relegated and replaced by the Magic City Masters.

The Clay Court Masters has become a hard-court Masters, and Chen Ran is playing at home, so this championship should be a sure bet.

Similarly, Cincinnati is also a hard court game, and it is also a fast hard court, which is what he is best at.

Then that leaves Monte Carlo.

However, Monte Carlo is not a compulsory tournament and may not be able to gather all clay court masters. Chen Ran has a good chance of winning this championship within a few years by playing lightly without pressure.

"Master Jin" is an achievement that no one has achieved so far, and only Djokovic has achieved it among the "Big Three" in the future. Now it has become within reach for Chen Ran.

And...back-to-back Clay Court Masters championships are enough for Chen Ran to be dubbed the "New King of Clay".

……

(End of this chapter)