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

Chapter 294 Team Match Strategy

Clarioda Hotel.

Chen Jin, Xie Mingyang, Zhang Jiahao, and Huang Youzheng squeezed into the same room.

Although it was a bit cramped and crowded, it had heating and showers, which was better than being stranded at the airport and sleeping on the streets.

After a long journey, both men and horses were exhausted.

Upon checking into the hotel and seeing the bed, Zhang Jiahao pounced on it like Peppa Pig seeing a mud puddle, rolling around several times.

"Finally, I can stretch and get some sleep."

Zhang Jiahao hugged his pillow and tucked the blanket between his legs, a look of enjoyment on his face.

Not only him, but even Xie Mingyang, who was usually as tough as steel, felt a little sleepy at this moment and rubbed his Jingming acupoint several times.

"Brother Jin."

Zhang Jiahao sat up halfway, "Are you really going to draw lots for people? Aren't you going to rest for a while?"

"I'm okay."

Chen Jin changed into his team uniform, wrapped in a down jacket, looking like a dumpling. "Since I promised the organizers in advance, I can't back out."

The arrangement for them to be guests in the lottery had already been made before they even set off.

Unexpectedly, the journey was delayed by more than ten hours.

"Shall I go with you?"

Xie Mingyang forced himself to stay awake.

"no need."

Chen Jin smiled and said, "You all rest well at the hotel, I'll be right back."

Three hours later.

After Chen Jin finished drawing lots and returned to his room, he saw Xie Mingyang sitting on the bed, wearing headphones, quietly watching the game on his tablet.

Zhang Jiahao and Huang Youzheng were fast asleep, snoring softly, and the sound of the door opening didn't even wake them.

Each person's bed has been selected.

At Xie Mingyang's suggestion, the three of them specially reserved the bed by the window for Chen Jin.

Lying in bed, you can take in the view of the nearby bay with just a turn of your head.

six o'clock.

Restaurant buffet.

Swedish meatballs, cloudberry sauce, grilled cod, hot dog sandwiches... Zhang Jiahao accepted everything without hesitation, devouring the food with gusto, like a wolf wolfing down its food in a whirlwind.

Chen Jin, Xie Mingyang, and others were already used to this.

Huang Youzheng was dumbfounded, secretly shocked: "Is this kid Luffy reincarnated?"

After dinner.

The group boarded a bus and headed to the stadium for a practice session to familiarize themselves with the facilities.

Meanwhile, since this competition uses a new racket, Chen Jin needs to get used to it in advance.

"Snapped!"

……

The crisp, loud sounds of the ball hitting the shuttlecock echoed through the empty stadium like firecrackers, making Zhang Jiahao and the others' eardrums ache.

Watching Chen Jinru's fluid and powerful backhand shots from mid-to-long range, Huang Youzheng picked at his ear and gasped, "What explosive shots!"

"But I feel that Chen Jin hasn't used his full strength yet."

"If I were on defense, I don't know how many I could stop."

Huang Youzheng's talent and strength are beyond doubt in being selected for the Beijing team.

In addition, he often practiced with two top players, Ma Long and Wang Chuqin.

It's obvious to everyone that the Beijing team intends to cultivate Huang Youzheng and have him replace Wang Chuqin.

If it weren't for the emergence of Chen Jin, this World Youth Championship might have been a golden opportunity for Huang Youzheng to shine.

Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs" in table tennis.

After one round of training.

Li Qian crossed his arms and asked Chen Jin, "How does the new racket feel?"

As the team leader of the World Youth Championships and the coach of the U19 men's team, with a strong player like Chen Jin under his command, Li Qian was well aware that this was clearly a sign of the higher-ups' cultivation of him.

At the same time, it also serves as a reminder to myself that I cannot afford to lose this World Youth Championship.

"very nice."

Chen Jin's hands were damp with sweat as he gently wiped the rubber on both his forehand and backhand.

As expected of the racket selected by Wang Hao, the master of penhold backhand topspin, this racket surpasses Chen Jin's old racket in both weight and balance.

The ball inside the table requires precise control.

With forehand and backhand, fast close to the table, explosive mid-table play, and stable long-range play, his style of play is a perfect match for Chen Jin's.

"That's good."

Li Qian smiled and said, "With you here at the World Youth Championships, I feel incredibly at ease."

End the field adaptation training.

It was already 9:30 when we got back to the hotel.

Li Qian went to Chen Jin and the others' room to discuss the match arrangements for the first round of the team competition tomorrow.

According to the rules of the team competition, each team sends three players to each match. The order of appearance within the team is determined by the team members and then submitted to the competition organizing committee.

Unless otherwise agreed, no changes are permitted.

Players compete in singles matches, each consisting of three best-of-five games. Each team match is also a best-of-five series, with the first team to win three games being the victor.

"Our opponent in the first round of the team elimination match tomorrow is Romania."

Li Qian held his phone, looking at information about the Romanian team. "Their coach is Andrić, and the players are Darius Movillianu, Julian Cirita, and Andrić Istrat."

"I have studied these opponents before, and I believe that with your strength, defeating them will be a piece of cake."

"Of course, the game can change in an instant, so we can't underestimate our opponents."

"To secure a victory, everyone must go all out and fight as hard as you can!"

"Do you understand?"

Of the four, Zhang Jiahao had the loudest voice: "I understand!"

For Zhang Jiahao, this World Junior Championship is an opportunity to prove himself.

Only by achieving results in the World Youth Championship and demonstrating his strength and potential to the coaching staff can he truly secure a place in the national team.

If he didn't have the ability, no matter how hard Chen Jin tried to help him, it would be to no avail.

"According to the competition organizing committee's regulations, the list of contestants and their order of appearance for tomorrow's competition must be submitted before 11 p.m. tonight."

Li Qian checked the time. "There's still over an hour left. Let's discuss it first."

"Is there even a need to discuss this?"

Zhang Jiahao patted his chest and said confidently, "First order is with Brother Jin, second order is with someone surnamed Xie, and I'll handle the third order."

"Does a mere Romanian team really require our 'Tian Ji' strategy of using horse racing tactics?"

Xie Mingyang had no objection to this arrangement.

Team competitions do indeed employ tactics similar to Tian Ji's horse racing strategy.

Use your inferior horse against their superior horse, your average horse against their inferior horse, and your superior horse against their average horse.

However, such a tactical arrangement has a prerequisite: that the strength of the two sides is not too different.

"Yes."

Xie Mingyang nodded, unusually agreeing with Zhang Jiahao's statement, "Our team has two top-notch horses, so the Tian Ji horse racing strategy will fall apart without us even attacking."

"Two top-quality horses?"

Zhang Jiahao curled his lip, "Hey Xie, you don't have to be so self-degrading, do you? Even if you're not a top-class horse, you're at least a medium-class horse, not an inferior one."

"Don't some people even know who the average horse is?"

Xie Mingyang sneered, "How about we go out and have a fight right now, and see who's the average horse?"

"Okay."

Zhang Jiahao rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight back, "Let's go, let's find a place to settle this one-on-one."

"Hey Hey hey!"

Li Qian tapped the table a few times with his fingers, and said with some dissatisfaction, "Your friendly match can be postponed. Let's finish this knockout match first."

The coach's authority swept out and suppressed the anger of the two men.

Looking at Xie Mingyang and Zhang Jiahao, Li Qian sighed helplessly.

From the Lima leg to the World Youth Championship, these two lads are like sworn enemies, always ready to have a one-on-one match.

"It seems that the two are incompatible according to their birth charts and their fates clash."

There was a pause.

Li Qian then continued, "I know your strength very well, so there's really no need for a 'Tian Ji' strategy."

"That's precisely why I'd like to adjust your matchup roster." Zhang Jiahao asked, "How?"

"Chen Jingang was already exhausted after playing in the Fukuoka finals, and the journey had been tiring, so I wanted to make things a little easier for him."

Li Qian said, "How about we have Xie Mingyang handle the first order and Chen Jin handle the second?"

Upon hearing that it was for Chen Jin, Xie Mingyang and Zhang Jiahao had no objections whatsoever.

I'd love to give it my full support.

"If you're going to relax, relax completely."

Zhang Jiahao laughed and said, "Brother Jin, how about I give you my spot as the third singles player?"

Hear the words.

Huang Youzheng couldn't help but mutter to himself, "If you want to relax completely, just be a substitute."

However, he ultimately did not say these words aloud.

He knew that Chen Jin was the real protagonist in this World Youth Championship.

There's no reason why the main character shouldn't appear on stage.

"I can do it."

Chen Jin smiled slightly.

Team competitions emphasize strategic formation and tactics.

If one can predict the opponent's order of appearance, it is not impossible to achieve an upset.

Therefore, the Romanian team must have its own plans for tomorrow's match.

In other words, Romania's third singles player is not necessarily a weak player.

So naturally, the question of whether it's easy or not is irrelevant.

Anyway, given Chen Jin's personality, once he steps onto the field, no matter who his opponent is, he will go all out to defeat them.

"Then it's settled."

Zhang Jiahao said, "The guy surnamed Xie will place one order, I'll place two, and Brother Jin will place three."

In reality, no matter which position Chen Jin plays or which opponent he faces, he always assumes he will get that point.

more importantly.

With Chen Jin providing support in the third singles, Xie Mingyang and Zhang Jiahao can also deliver output without pressure in the front.

Think of this.

Li Qian picked up his phone and made a few operations: "Okay, it's settled then. I'll submit the list according to this arrangement."

……

Next room.

The four players from the Romanian team happened to be staying there.

Meanwhile, Coach Andrei was also discussing the lineup and strategy for tomorrow's team competition with his players.

"First single: Darius, Second single: Julian, Third single: Andrei..."

After the bearded coach finished speaking, he glanced around and asked, "Does anyone have any objections to this arrangement?"

"I have."

Darius immediately raised his hand.

"What is your opinion, my dear Darius?"

"Coach Andre, could you please not assign me the singles position for tomorrow's team competition?"

"why?"

"Because... I don't want to be tortured by Chen Jin twice."

"..."

Coach Andrei fell silent.

He understood Darius's feelings at that moment.

When Darius learned during the afternoon draw that his first-round opponent in the singles competition would be Chen Jin, he was devastated.

And now, in tomorrow's team competition, they will face the Chinese team in the first round.

Chen Jin is very likely to be a singles player as well.

Knowing he was no match for Chen Jin, Darius didn't want to suffer two blows and double the torment.

Coach Andrei expressed his understanding of this.

"Which position do you want to play?"

Coach Andre asked.

"Second or third singles... as long as it's not the first singles, I don't mind being a substitute."

A flicker of fear crossed Darius's eyes. "I don't want to run into that monster in the match."

“Dear Darius”

Coach Andrei looked at Darius and asked, "What if Chen Jin doesn't score a single bet either?"

"impossible!"

Darius said with certainty, "I have a strong feeling that Chen Jin is definitely going to be the one."

"If possible, I strongly request to play three singles, and the further away from Chen Jin, the better."

Judging from Darius's expression, he had clearly made up his mind.

"You don't regret it?"

"I swear in the name of my great-great-grandfather that I will never regret it!"

"Since you insist... fine."

Coach Andre didn't press the issue, and turned to look at the other two players, "Which of you wants to play the singles?"

Julian and Andrei exchanged a glance, and saw a hint of reluctance deep in each other's pupils.

In today's table tennis world, who doesn't know the name Chen Jin?
The Montpellier Championship and the Frankfurt Championship—these two matches alone have shaken the whole of Europe.

A 15-year-old boy, in just three months, went from being completely unknown to fighting his way up to second place in the world.

With such terrifying strength, who wouldn't be terrified?
Upon learning that Chen Jin would be participating in this World Youth Championship, almost all the U19 players were plunged into despair, fearing that they would have to avoid him in the competition.

How could he dare to take the initiative and compete with Chen Jin?

Seeing the fear and hesitation in the two men, Coach Andre had no choice but to switch to his persuasive mode, bombarding them with motivational platitudes: "Jesus knew he would be nailed to the cross, yet he went without hesitation, did not run away, but accepted it calmly. Do you know why?"

"It is because Jesus had the courage to sacrifice himself to awaken the world!"

"It was this courage that moved God to raise Jesus from the dead three days later."

"And you, my children, you also need that courage to face powerful enemies."

Coach Andrei's words were powerful and resonant, like a speech by a man with a mustache, full of inexplicable allure: "Even if we lose in the end, we can rise from the ashes like a phoenix!"

A surge of heat rushed to the top of my head.

Without even thinking, Andrei blurted out, "Coach, I'll take a single!"

“Very good, Andrei.”

Coach Andrei cast an admiring glance at him, and fearing that young Andrei might change his mind, he immediately said, "It's settled then. Andrei will play the first singles, Julian the second, and Darius the third."

"Coach Andrei..."

Andrei acted impulsively, and as soon as the words left his mouth, he felt remorse.

"Andrei, you must understand that once words are spoken, they are like arrows released from a bow; there is no turning back."

Coach Andre patted him on the shoulder, "Good luck in the game."

talking.

The Romanian team's starting lineup for the first round of the team competition was compiled into an email and sent to the World Youth Championship organizing committee.

Shortly after.

I have already received an email reply from the organizing committee.

"what?"

Coach Andre glanced at the list quickly and said, "The starting lineup for the Chinese team has also been released."

"Let me see..."

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly froze.

A strange expression appeared on his face.

"What's wrong, Coach Andrei?"

Seeing the coach's unusual expression, Darius asked curiously.

"See for yourself."

Coach Andre handed the phone to Darius.

He took it and looked at it.