Table tennis: Swinging the racket billions of times, achieving a grand slam

Chapter 267: There are gaps even between geniuses!
The next day, Chen Jin had no competition.

But he still got up early in the morning and accompanied Lin Shidong to the training hall.

There are two matches for the Chinese men's singles today.

Wang Chuqin vs. Francesca.

Lin Shidong VS Alex Lebrun.

Both games are held in the evening, one after the other, and their schedules are adjacent.

Thanks to Wang Chuqin's off-field guidance, Wang Hao was chosen first.

With Wang Hao's time and energy, he naturally cannot coach two games in a row.

Therefore, Lin Shidong settled for the second best.

His off-court guidance was provided by coach Liu Zhiqiang.

Although he cannot coach on the field, after all, he is his direct disciple. How could Wang Hao just sit back and watch Lin Shidong's game?
During the training, Wang Hao personally supervised.

Wang Hao stood by with his arms folded across his chest, looking at Chen Jin and Lin Shidong who were practicing and exchanging ideas together, with a hint of doting smile in his eyes.

It's like an old father watching his two children playing happily on the lawn, feeling very satisfied.

"When Coach Wu strongly recommended Chen Jin to me, I was a little hesitant."

"Now it seems that Coach Wu is the one who has the most insightful vision."

Wang Hao couldn't help but sigh in his heart, "However, although Coach Wu is important, Chen Jin's own talent and diligence are even more crucial."

"His backhand tearing action is similar to Lin Shidong's."

"To be able to have such a backhand quality with a straight-blade horizontal hit, the wrist talent is really terrifying."

Since Wang Hao retired, although some people have inherited the straight-blade horizontal hitting technique, it is still a little lacking.

Therefore, there has been a saying in the table tennis world: "When it comes to hitting with a straight blade, the strength lies not in the technique, but in Wang Hao."

Wang Hao himself had to admit that if he wanted to compete with the backhand of the horizontal racket with a straight racket, he did need strong wrist talent.

That is why, in the era of 40+ big balls, straight-blade blades are gradually declining.

Looking at the world table tennis world, whether in the professional arena or the amateur world, how many young people still insist on using the straight-blade style?

In the years since he became the head coach of the Chinese men's table tennis team, Wang Hao also wanted to find a talented straight-blade player to inherit his mantle.

Even, let him take her place and make up for her regrets from the past.

It’s a pity that I didn’t succeed in the end.

Until Chen Jin appeared.

Finally, Wang Hao saw a glimmer of hope to realize his dream and make up for his regrets.

Looking at Chen Jin who was sweating profusely, Wang Hao seemed to see himself when he was twenty years old.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to him: "Instructor Wu discovered Chen Jin and strongly recommended him to me. Besides cherishing his talent, is there any other reason?"

As we all know, among the disciples of Wu School, there were once two masters of straight-blade.

But unfortunately, none of them won the Grand Slam.

Especially Wang Hao.

He reached the Olympic men's singles final three times but missed the gold medal.

This is not only Wang Hao's regret, but also the regret hidden deep in Coach Wu's heart.

Just when Wang Hao was lost in thought.

Lin Shidong raised his hand and signaled Chen Jin to take a rest.

So, the two of them put down their rackets, walked to the side, picked up the mineral water, and drank tons of it.

"small stone."

Glancing at Wang Chuqin at the next table, Wang Hao saw that Wang Chuqin was training with Liang Jingkun. He then walked towards Lin Shidong as if he was strolling in the garden, "How do you feel today?"

"good."

Lin Shidong wiped the sweat off his face.

You know, although Chen Jin uses a straight-blade, his ability to hold the ball in the middle and long distances with his backhand is even better than Alex's.

Chen Jin's forehand stalemate, serve and attack, small balls on the table, and forehand and backhand transition speed are much better than Alex's.

With such a master sparring partner, how bad can your playing condition be?

"You've fought Alex twice before, right?"

Wang Hao asked.

"Correct."

Lin Shidong nodded, "One win and one loss."

As the new champion of the European Championship, Alex's strength is beyond doubt.

Lin Shidong dare not be careless about tonight's game.

The winning rate in foreign matches has always been a major criterion for whether one can become a main player of the national table tennis team.

Therefore, if you want to secure your position as a main player, you must go all out in foreign wars.

"Ah."

Wang Hao did not comment, and turned to Chen Jin and said, "Chen Jin, you haven't fought with Alex yet?"

"No."

Chen Jin shook his head.

"Then from your perspective, what is the probability that Lin Shidong will defeat Alex tonight?"

Wang Hao smiled.

"At least 70:30."

Chen Jin looked sincere, without any pretense.

"Who seven?"

Wang Hao asked again.

"Of course it's Brother Stone."

Chen Jin answered without any hesitation.

"You think so highly of Lin Shidong?"

Wang Hao smiled and said, "Is it because of your teammates that you don't want to hit him before the game?"

"No!"

Chen Jin said seriously, "I have watched Alex's games and have played against Brother Shitou a few times, so I know them a little bit."

"Alex's serve, like his brother Felix's, is extremely fast, with tricky placements, squat-chop serves, and unconventional backhand serves that often make opponents uncomfortable."

"Also, Alex's forehand and backhand transitions and connections are also very fast. His first three shots are decisive and he has strong mid-range and long-range maneuvers."

"This is Alex's strength, but his weaknesses are equally obvious." "First, his serve reception is not very stable, and second, his personality tends to be impatient."

"On the other hand, Brother Shitou fought hard in the first three shots and in the middle and long range, and he was not inferior to Alex at all."

"As long as I can serve well and not be impatient, it shouldn't be a problem to beat Alex."

"I predict that at most 3:1, Brother Shitou will win the game."

Listening to Chen Jin talking eloquently and knowing everything about his family, Wang Hao smiled and nodded frequently.

It has to be said that Chen Jin’s current achievements cannot be simply summarized as his extraordinary talent and outstanding strength.

The understanding and analysis of the players is equally incredible.

You know, before this, Chen Jin had never fought with Alex.

However, he was still able to analyze Alex's playing style so thoroughly, which showed that he put in a lot of effort in his daily life.

"Little Stone, did you hear that?"

Wang Hao smiled with satisfaction and said to Lin Shidong, "I have already figured out the tactics for tonight for you."

"clear."

……

Just as Chen Jin expected.

In the first game between Lin Shidong and Alex, Alex used his serve to control the rhythm from the start and suppressed Lin Shidong with a quick attack.

In addition, the continuous lucky shots that hit the net and the edge disrupted Lin Shidong's rhythm.

Although Lin Shidong once led 8:7, Alex's handling of the critical time was particularly decisive.

Eventually, the situation was reversed.

Alex took the first game with 11:8.

Between the auditorium.

Chen Jin and Lin Gaoyuan sat in the corner and watched the game.

Seeing that Lin Shidong lost the first game, Lin Gaoyuan frowned slightly: "Xiao Shitou's condition is a bit bad, is it because his hands haven't warmed up yet?"

"It's only the first game, don't panic."

Chen Jin was calm and composed. "However, I hope Lin Shidong can adjust his tactics in the second game and use serve attacks and close-to-table speed to suppress Alex."

at the same time.

On the playing field.

Liu Zhiqiang was not impatient and arranged the tactics for the second game with Lin Shidong: "Alex's serve reception is not very rigorous. In this game, we should fight him and play close to the table."

"Serve with more variations, side spin, no spin, take turns. When there's an opportunity, be more decisive. Regardless of whether you're on the stage or not, show your momentum first."

"Don't Alex likes speed? Let's stand close to the stage and compete with him in speed."

"Be firm and don't hesitate."

The second round begins.

Lin Shidong carried out the tactics to the end.

Although there were occasional mistakes, when the score reached 5:5, he scored four points in a row by using serve and speed close to the table.

Alex tried to counterattack, but fortunately Lin Shidong withstood the pressure.

11:7, tied the score.

"Fuck."

Lin Gaoyuan turned his head and looked at Chen Jin with a look of surprise in his eyes, "Lin Shidong really won this game by serving and getting close to the table."

"Chen Jin actually predicted it in advance."

It is hard to imagine that a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old has such amazing reading and problem-solving abilities for the competition.

Lin Gaoyuan was selected for the national team at the age of fourteen.

He is a genius in terms of talent and strength.

But if you ask yourself, how could he have the same game reading ability as Chen Jin at that time?

"Perhaps this is what they call 'there are gaps between geniuses'."

Lin Gaoyuan sighed inwardly.

In the third game, Lin Shidong continued the tactics and touch from the previous game.

Forehand lob, backhand blast, sideways charge... fierce attack, all at his fingertips.

Leading 8:3 at the start.

Just when we thought the game was won, Alex was no ordinary player.

He changed his serve to long balls and continued to fight with his backhand, chasing the score to 8:10.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Liu Zhiqiang immediately called a timeout to interrupt Alex's momentum of chasing points.

It turns out that this pause is crucial.

Lin Shidong, who returned from the break, acted decisively and won the crucial game.

"Okay, no more suspense."

Chen Jin smiled easily, "Lin Shidong has already won this game."

"The fourth game hasn't even started yet, and you're so sure that Lin Shidong will win?"

Lin Gaoyuan asked curiously.

"After falling behind 1:2, Alex will definitely step up his fight in the next round."

Chen Jin smiled and said, "But, with his impatient personality, the more he fights, the more mistakes he will make."

"As long as Lin Shidong doesn't make any fatal mistakes, the fourth game should be easy to win."

In this regard.

Lin Gaoyuan was skeptical: "Really?"

But the result of the game once again confirmed Chen Jin's prediction.

In the fourth game, Lin Shidong started with a 5-0 lead, with serve attacks, continuous backhands, and stalemates in the middle and long distances... Whether it was his touch or his mentality, he firmly suppressed Alex.

Alex tried to fight, but was closely guarded by Lin Shidong and made many mistakes.

11: 4.

Lin Shidong came back from a 1-0 deficit to advance to the quarterfinals.

As he walked off the field, Lin Shidong wiped the sweat off his face and glanced around.

Seeing Chen Jin in the crowd, he couldn't help but curl up his lips and smile: "3:1, you guessed it right."

(End of this chapter)