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

Chapter 296 My Ancestors Helped Me!

Seeing Xie Mingyang defeat Andrei by a score of 3:0, it was his turn to take the stage.

Three months later, Zhang Jiahao stepped onto the international stage again, trembling all over, shaking like a leaf.

"what happened?"

Huang Youzheng, standing beside him, immediately noticed Zhang Jiahao's unusual demeanor. "Nervous?"

"Who's nervous? I'm just cold!"

Zhang Jiahao let out a long breath and tried his best to appear calm and composed. "Don't you know I'm from the South? We Southerners rely on shivering to keep warm in winter."

"Are you cold? The heating is on so high."

Huang Youzheng was about to make a few sarcastic remarks.

Just then, Li Qian interrupted, "Zhang Jiahao, I don't care if you're cold or nervous, the second match is about to begin, and you can only win, not lose."

"Win against your opponent as soon as possible, then go back and rest, understand?"

Zhang Jiahao shouted, "Understood!"

"The opponent's second singles player is named Julian, who is the best player on the Romanian team after Darius."

Li Qian continued, "His rhythm is varied, his first three strokes are technically strong, and his long-range and forehand and backhand shots are outstanding. We must not underestimate him."

"Relax, don't be nervous."

Chen Jin extended his right hand and gently placed it on Zhang Jiahao's left shoulder. "It's okay to lose the first game. Don't feel pressured. I know your strength."

This World Junior Championships is of paramount importance to Zhang Jiahao.

It is both an opportunity and a pressure.

Moreover, unlike Chen Jin and Xie Mingyang, who had already experienced major competitions.

Apart from the Lima Challenger, Zhang Jiahao has had no other major tournament experience since then.

Feeling nervous is perfectly normal.

Chen Jin understood Zhang Jiahao's strength. As long as he was fully focused on the game and got into a hot hand, these foreign players would be no match for him.

"Brother Jin, don't worry."

Zhang Jiahao's gaze was firm. "I will definitely not let you down."

Chen Jin was the one who secured this opportunity for him to participate in the World Youth Championships.

If we don't seize this opportunity, wouldn't we be letting down Chen Jin's good intentions?
The first game begins.

As Li Qian said, Julian's first three moves were extremely fierce.

Not only are their serves varied, but their attacks are also decisive.

In addition, Zhang Jiahao was slow to get into the game and was unable to get into the game rhythm for a long time.

They were surprisingly down 0-8 to Julian at the start.

"This is not good."

Seeing this, Li Qian crossed his arms and frowned, "If we continue like this, we're bound to lose this round."

Losing the game was secondary; being utterly outplayed by foreign players meant that in subsequent matches, no one would dare to let him remain in the starting lineup.

Keep in mind that Huang Youzheng was also sharpening his knives nearby, eager to try his luck.

"Should we call a timeout?"

My mind hasn't changed.

Suddenly, Chen Jin spoke up and shouted at Zhang Jiahao, "Jiahao, don't try to outmaneuver him, try to cut his middle part."

"Roger that!"

Zhang Jiahao wiped the sweat from his brow and gradually focused his gaze.

Then, the tactics were adjusted.

Julian serves.

The forehand is short.

Side down.

With a flick of his wrist, Zhang Jiahao chopped the ball all the way to Julian's mid-line baseline.

That shot was both fast and powerful.

Julian was clearly not prepared; by the time he reacted, Julian was already in front of him.

He hurriedly retreated, hanging from a plank.

The quality of the return shot was not high.

"You gave me a good shower, now it's finally my turn!"

With a surge of murderous intent in his eyes, Zhang Jiahao seized the opportunity and charged sideways.

"Snapped!"

The ball, seemingly driven by personal grudges, suddenly transformed into a ferocious beast, tearing apart Julian's defense.

1: 8.

Zhang Jiahao finally pulled one back.

"Choo-hoo!"

"Zhu--"

Zhang Jiahao clenched his fist and roared, his momentum unstoppable.

He looked excited, as if victory was assured and he had secured the championship point.

Seeing Zhang Jiahao's excited celebration, Julian's lips curled into a smile: "It's just one point, is it really necessary to get so excited?"

Holding a huge seven-point advantage, he remained calm and composed, showing no sign of panic.

But what he didn't expect was...

That point just now seemed to have opened a floodgate, and Zhang Jiahao's game became increasingly smooth.

2: 8.

3: 8.

8: 4.

8: 5.

Zhang Jiahao scored five points in a row.

On the field, Zhang Jiahao's hoarse roars filled the air.

At this moment, Julian finally realized the seriousness of the situation, and his expression became increasingly serious.

A sudden, long, fast ball finally disrupted Zhang Jiahao's scoring rhythm.

5: 9.

Zhang Jiahao serves.

Julian twists the upper step platform inward.

Zhang Jiahao retaliated by tearing the paper apart.

Julian's forehand attack.

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

……

The rapid sounds of hitting the ball were incessant.

The two players countered each other's moves, gradually retreating from the table, resulting in a mid-to-long-range tug-of-war.

Julian's forehand topspin is extremely powerful, and every shot carries a sharp, piercing sound.

This forced Zhang Jiahao to step down from the stage and relinquish his position.

Fortunately, Zhang Jiahao had practiced with Xu Xin when he was with the Shanghai team.

Pulling back from mid-to-long range is tantamount to expanding the territory.

Although its power was not as great as Julian's, its spin was far superior.

Moreover, Zhang Jiahao's footwork, after being trained by Xu Xin, seemed to have no cooldown time.

He ran left and right, across the entire table, and hit three or four seemingly hopeless shots in a row.

"what's the situation?"

Julian was getting impatient. "Why has this kid suddenly become like a cockroach? He just can't be killed no matter what I do?"

Sudden.

Zhang Jiahao leaped forward and returned to the platform.

A quick backhand crosscourt shot, like a silver bullet, instantly pierced through Julian's forehand half of the table. 6:9.

Such a wonderful rally immediately drew applause and cheers from the audience.

"Choo-hoo!"

"Zhu--"

Zhang Jiahao roared to the sky again, his morale soaring.

Followed by.

Press on with our momentum and pursue our victory.

They managed to tie the score.

9: 9.

"Whoo~"

Seeing a stunning reversal about to unfold in his hands, Zhang Jiahao took a deep breath, trying his best to control the excitement in his heart.

At this moment, Li Qian, who was off the field, shouted: "Stay calm, don't rush!"

"Da da da, da da da..."

Zhang Jiahao tossed the ball, blew on it, and then bent down to serve.

The center line is slightly to the right.

Side down.

When it came to crucial points, Julian became more alert and dared not make any rash moves.

Therefore, they wanted to reduce their losses.

However, Zhang Jiahao's serve spin far exceeded Julian's expectations.

The moment the ball is touched.

laugh!
The rubber is slipping.

The ball dropped sharply downwards.

Just when Zhang Jiahao thought he had won the game.

Unexpectedly, a dramatic scene unfolded.

The ping-pong ball rolled along the net for a distance before suddenly falling and landing on Zhang Jiahao's half of the table.

The serve grazed the net!
And what's more, it even wiped a dead net!
Even with Zhang Jiahao's quick reflexes, he couldn't save the ball.

9: 10.

Julian won the first game and reached game point.

"Fuck!"

Zhang Jiahao was almost furious. "A net ball at a crucial point, isn't that just messing with my mentality?"

"no problem, no problem!"

Li Qian clapped enthusiastically and reassured her, "Stay calm and make the most of your serve."

Taking another deep breath, Zhang Jiahao adjusted his mindset and continued serving.

Stealing growth!

Autumn was like lightning, rushing straight towards Julian's backhand baseline.

Julian hurriedly returned the ball.

"Break!"

A slight sound followed.

"Fuck!"

Zhang Jiahao finally lost his temper, "Another close call?!"

"Sorry."

Julian raised his hand in acknowledgment.

What could Zhang Jiahao say in response? He could only offer a helpless, bitter smile.

He didn't want to feed the pigs.

9: 11.

We lost the first game.

Gently putting down his racket, Zhang Jiahao picked up a towel and walked to the sidelines.

"Brother Jin, can you believe I actually lost to two lucky balls?"

Zhang Jiahao was furious and resentful. "Damn it, I've played so many matches, and this is the first time I've ever lost to someone because of a lucky shot!"

"Don't lose your composure."

Chen Jin laughed and said, "This is Sweden, Odin's territory. It's normal that your Zhang family's ancestors couldn't reach this far."

"Odin is nothing, I have connections!"

Zhang Jiahao grew angrier the more he thought about it, gritting his teeth, and suddenly a wicked thought arose in his mind.

He clasped his hands together, raised them above his head, and shook them vigorously towards the sky a few times.

"Zhang family ancestors above, in the next game, you have to help me recover all the points I lost by brushing the net or the edge of the net."

Zhang Jiahao muttered to himself, "Next year during Qingming Festival, I'll burn more paper money for you."

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

Huang Youzheng, however, was dumbfounded by Zhang Jiahao's actions: "Are you fucking cosplaying Principal Louis Koo's 'Current Trend'?"

After he heard Zhang Jiahao's prayer clearly, he suddenly realized: "He really is worshipping a god!"

"But the problem is, if you're asking your ancestors for blessings before you can compete, are you sure you're not some kind of clown brought from the monkeys?"

My mind hasn't changed.

The second game is about to begin.

Suddenly, Zhang Jiahao shouted, "My ancestors, help me!"

Having said that, he resolutely turned around and returned to the field.

Huang Youzheng: "..."

Speechless, he immediately gave a cold laugh: "I'd like to see how your ancestors help you."

soon.

A scene that completely surprised Huang Youzheng occurred.

At the start of the second game, Zhang Jiahao hit a short ball, and surprisingly, three consecutive balls grazed the net.

Moreover, all the netting I cleaned was dead!

"Fuck!"

Huang Youzheng stared in disbelief. "Could it be that there really is such a thing as ancestors manifesting their power?"

"This...this isn't scientific!!!"

0: 3.

As if he had avenged a great grudge, Zhang Jiahao's face showed a satisfied smile: "It still has to be my Zhang family ancestor who made a move. Little Odin was easily dealt with."

After three lucky balls at the start, Julian's mentality began to crumble.

"WTF?!"

Julian experienced some fluctuations, which affected his feel for the game.

Even his best-practiced first three shots were frequently mishit; either the ball hit the edge of the paddle and went out of bounds, or he misjudged the situation and hit the ball into the net.

Energy is conserved; one thing diminishes while another increases.

On the other hand, Zhang Jiahao's touch became increasingly hot, and he grew stronger with each game.

Although his strength and speed are inferior to those of Chen Jin and Xie Mingyang.

But his spin was even better than Xie Mingyang's.

The landing point is tricky, and the performance is stable.

In addition, their superb ability to counter-loop from mid to long range often allows them to appear from unexpected angles and launch powerful counter-loops.

Julian was at a disadvantage.

The score quickly widened.

Second game, 11:7.

The score is 1-1.

Zhang Jiahao won a game back.

(End of this chapter)