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

Chapter 336 Qualifying Round

1 month 29 day.

New Year's Day.

Singapore Sports Centre.

The training hall was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers.

The walls were decorated with all sorts of New Year decorations, creating a festive atmosphere.

When Chen Jin, Zhang Jiahao, Xie Mingyang and Huang Youzheng arrived at the training hall early in the morning.

But Liu Guoliang, Qin Zhijian, Li Xun and other national table tennis stars were already standing at the door, holding a stack of red envelopes in their hands.

Everyone's face was beaming with a bright and warm smile.

Happy New Year! Wishing you good health, great fortune, and continued success!

Liu Guoliang smiled and handed over the red envelopes, saying, "Come on, everyone, one red envelope, New Year's money."

Chen Jin and the others reached out and took the gifts, thanked them one by one, and stuffed them into their backpacks.

"Thank you, Coach Liu."

Zhang Jiahao grinned, "Since it's New Year's money, shouldn't I kowtow?"

"A small red envelope is unnecessary."

Liu Guoliang laughed.

"How could a red envelope personally handed out by Coach Liu be small?"

As he spoke, Zhang Jiahao opened it and took a look.

The smile on his face immediately faded by more than half.

"Ten or twelve yuan?"

Zhang Jiahao couldn't help but complain in his heart, "My great-grandmother gives me more than this amount of New Year's money."

You're supposed to be the president of the Table Tennis Association, how dare you offer a mere twelve-yuan red envelope?

"Just for good luck, as a token of appreciation."

Seeing through Zhang Jiahao's thoughts, Liu Guoliang smiled and said, "A bigger one is fine too."

"If you can win the men's doubles championship, I'll give you a separate red envelope."

"Really?"

Zhang Jiahao's eyes lit up.

"Who would dare to lie on the first day of the Lunar New Year?"

Liu Guoliang laughed.

"it is good!"

Zhang Jiahao rolled up his sleeves, his eyes resolute, as if he had made up his mind. "This time, I'm going to make Coach Liu spend some money on me."

They exchanged a few New Year's greetings.

Afterwards, Chen Jin and the other three each found two pool tables.

Put down your backpack and stretch to warm up.

Zhang Jiahao sat on the floor, stretching his legs, his gaze sweeping over the pool table next to him.

Seeing Xie Mingyang and Huang Youzheng jogging slowly around the table together, he couldn't help but purse his lips: "The guy surnamed Xie has integrated into the Beijing team quite quickly."

Several days ago, the Shanghai team had already issued a notice to terminate Xie Mingyang's contract.

Xie Mingyang then joined the Beijing team, becoming teammates with Ma Long, Wang Chuqin, and Huang Youzheng.

"Newcomers are better than old ones."

Zhang Jiahao spat inwardly in Xie Mingyang's direction, "Pah, traitor!"

Chen Jin smiled at this, saying he had no partner.

He and Xie Mingyang had already reached an understanding regarding the transfer.

More importantly, he believes that even if Xie Mingyang joins the Beijing team, there may be competition in the future.

However, their relationship will not become distant because of this.

After warm-up, we began offensive drills.

Just at this time.

Wang Chuqin appeared alone in the training hall, yawning incessantly, carrying a backpack.

"Brother Boss."

Huang Youzheng greeted him with a smile, "Happy New Year."

To everyone's surprise, Wang Chuqin seemed not to see him at all and walked straight towards Xie Mingyang.

"Happy New Year."

Wang Chuqin greeted them warmly.

He already knew about Xie Mingyang joining the Beijing team.

From then on, the two became teammates.

Furthermore, Zhang Lei privately approached Wang Chuqin and asked him to take extra care of Xie Mingyang during the competition.

It's clear that the Beijing team highly values ​​Xie Mingyang.

Although Xie Mingyang is not as good as Chen Jin, his talent should not be underestimated.

They are bound to become the backbone of the Chinese national table tennis team in the future.

"Happy New Year."

Faced with Wang Chuqin's overtures, Xie Mingyang remained indifferent and spoke in a cold tone.

"You have a qualifying round tomorrow, right?"

Wang Chuqin put his backpack on the ground, and with a rustling sound, bent down and unzipped it. "I'll spar with you."

Having the world's number one and China's top table tennis player as a sparring partner is something countless players dream of.

Unexpectedly, Xie Mingyang did not appreciate it.

"no need."

Xie Mingyang shook his head and said, "Huang Youzheng also has a qualifying match tomorrow, so you can be his sparring partner."

Having finished speaking.

Carrying my backpack, I walked towards the next house.

Only Wang Chuqin and Huang Youzheng remained, staring at each other in bewilderment.

Wang Chuqin, feeling snubbed after offering his warm welcome, watched Xie Mingyang's retreating figure, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes.

As the heir apparent of the Chinese national table tennis team, when has he ever suffered such humiliation since becoming famous?

If it were anyone else, given his temper, he would have already given them a hard time.

However, Xie Mingyang is different.

He could only swallow his anger.

As Xie Mingyang walked to Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao's pool table, Wang Chuqin's expression grew increasingly grim.

"Brother Boss."

Huang Youzheng asked cautiously, "Still want to practice?"

"practice."

Wang Chuqin's face was indifferent.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Xie Mingyang again.

How dare a mere newcomer put on airs in front of me!

If we have the chance, we must teach him a lesson!

……

"Add one more."

Xie Mingyang stood to the side, holding a racket.

"cut."

Zhang Jiahao scoffed, "Why would you add us? Your team is over there."

He said that, but his actions betrayed him, and he gave up his seat.

"I'm here to see Chen Jin."

Xie Mingyang glanced at him indifferently, "You're not even worthy of being my sparring partner."

"What the hell!"

Zhang Jiahao leaped up, sticking his buttocks out and slamming into Xie Mingyang.

Taking a half step back, Xie Mingyang slightly turned his body to the side, effortlessly dodging Zhang Jiahao's attack on his buttocks.

"Stop it."

Chen Jin frowned slightly. "Come over and practice."

"Oh."

Zhang Jiahao gave Xie Mingyang a hard shove and then scurried over to Chen Jin's side.

With three players attacking against each other, it's a perfect opportunity for doubles training.

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

"Snapped!"

……

The crisp, resounding sound of the ball hitting the ground, along with the sharp screech of the shoes rubbing against the soles, echoed throughout the training hall.

"Your opponent in tomorrow's qualifier is Benedek Olaf?"

Chen Jin suddenly asked.

Of the three, Zhang Jiahao only qualified for doubles, while Chen Jin went directly into the main draw.

Xie Mingyang is the only one who needs to start from the qualifying rounds.

"You know him?"

Xie Mingyang was taken aback. It's worth noting that compared to Boll, Ovtcharov, Moregard, the Lebrunn brothers, and even European stars like Darko and Franziska, Benedek Ora was relatively unknown in the world of table tennis.

If it weren't for his opponent in this qualifying round, even Xie Mingyang wouldn't have known that such a person existed.

Surprisingly, Chen Jin actually knew this person.

Although this person was no match for Chen Jin, and they had never fought each other before.

"I've watched his matches before."

Chen Jin said calmly, "He's 1.9 meters tall, a typical European giant."

"1.9 meters tall?"

Zhang Jiahao stuck out his tongue. "Why doesn't he go play basketball?"

"1.9 meters?"

Xie Mingyang pondered for a moment, "With a long arm span and a large area to cover the table, the speed of switching between forehand and backhand will definitely be relatively slow, and the flexibility will also be average."

"Yes."

Chen Jin nodded, "Moreover, like other European players, Ola excels at mid-to-long-range rallies, but his fatal weaknesses are control at the table and defense in the middle."

Unexpectedly, Chen Jin knew so much about a player ranked so low.

Xie Mingyang's respect grew even stronger.

Chen Jin's reminder also gave him a clear tactical plan for tomorrow's match: "Close-to-the-table fast attack, change the landing point, cut into his middle."

"Correct."

Chen Jin praised, "But don't underestimate your opponent."

“Ola once upset Anton Karlberg, who was ranked much higher than him, at the World Table Tennis Championships in 23.”

"Moreover, he has been a regular in the qualifying rounds for many years and can be called the king of the qualifying rounds. Many young players from the Chinese national table tennis team have been blocked by him from the main draw."

Xie Mingyang nodded: "Understood."

Although it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, with the competition just around the corner, the three of them stayed in the training hall, focused and training in an orderly manner.

Nothing to say for a day.

The qualifying rounds officially began on the second day, January 30.

8 PM, table number two.

Xie Mingyang will face Benedek Olaf.

The stands were completely empty.

Apart from Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao, there were very few viewers.

After all, it was just a qualifying round, and it was the second day of the Lunar New Year, so most people were visiting relatives and friends and didn't have time to watch the game.

Upon seeing his opponent, who was half a head taller than him and resembled an iron tower, Xie Mingyang became even more determined in his mind to employ the "close-to-the-table fast attack" tactic.

However, in their first encounter, they need to adapt to the opponent's serves and attacking intensity.

"This European giant is indeed very strong."

In the first few points of the first game, Xie Mingyang was mostly tested, and he was beaten by Ola's consecutive forehand and backhand smashes.

In addition, Ola is tall and strong, with long arms and legs, covering a large area of ​​the table and having strong defensive capabilities.

Despite Xie Mingyang's strength and repeated attacks, he was unable to break through Orana's impenetrable defense.

The score was once down 1-6.

Seeing Xie Mingyang fall into a disadvantageous position at the start, Zhang Jiahao frowned deeply: "What on earth is Xie up to?"

"He wanted to try and see if he could pull through Aura."

Chen Jin remained calm and composed. "Unfortunately, the power was ultimately a bit too weak, and the landing point wasn't bold enough."

"Could it be that this guy surnamed Xie couldn't even get past the qualifying rounds?"

Zhang Jiahao said with concern.

"Not really."

Chen Jin smiled slightly, "Ola is already a veteran in his thirties, and his footwork is not very agile. If he loses more stamina in the first game, it will be easier for him to win the later games."

Without a doubt, Xie Mingyang adopted a fierce offensive tactic right from the start of the first game, clearly aiming to wear down Ola's stamina.

This is a clever way to play.

After all, Ola's strengths and weaknesses were on full display, and even when they were behind, they were still under Xie Mingyang's control.

"almost."

Glancing at the scoreboard, Xie Mingyang took a deep breath. "We have to start catching up, otherwise, if the score gap gets too big, we'll be in big trouble."

Immediately, the tactics and strategies were adjusted.

By controlling the game from within the arena and varying the duration, Aura's initiative can be restricted.

At the same time, strengthen the attack in the first three shots and the speed of the swing near the table.

They quickly tied the score.

7: 7.

Aura naturally understood that he couldn't afford to get bogged down in a fight with Xie Mingyang on the court, and he wanted to regain control of the match.

However, perhaps due to Xie Mingyang's continuous scoring, his mentality fluctuated.

Taking the initiative led to frequent mistakes.

The final score was 11-9.

Xie Mingyang won the first game.

"Played well."

As Xie Mingyang's off-court coach for this match, Li Qian watched with bated breath.

It was especially nerve-wracking when we were behind in the score at the start.

If Xie Mingyang fails to even make it through the qualifying rounds, then he, as the head coach, will be held responsible.

The key point is that Xie Mingyang is now a member of the Beijing team.

Li Qian felt even more pressure.

Fortunately, Xie Mingyang made timely adjustments and turned the game around.

This finally put Li Qian's mind at ease.

“Aura is tall, has a long reach, and a large area to cover the platform. The landing points on both sides may not be able to kill him.”

As Li Qian handed over the water bottle, he said, "So in the second game, let's change our strategy and try to cut into his mid lane and attack his chasing position."

"When receiving serves, be decisive, don't hold back, twist when you should, and attack when you should, and make good use of the first three shots to attack."

"Hold the mid-range and close-range positions and suppress the opponent with speed."

"In the qualifying rounds, there is no room for trial and error; winning steadily is the right way."

Li Qian's tactical approach was exactly the same as Chen Jin's, and they were in complete agreement.

"Ah."

Xie Mingyang wiped his sweat and nodded.

In the second game, the playing style changed drastically.

Following Li Qian's tactical deployment, Xie Mingyang accelerated his attack on the inside of the table, continuously attacking Ola's middle lane, forcing Ola to make frequent mistakes.

Although Aura managed to turn sideways and launch a high-quality counterattack, Xie Mingyang stuck to his tactics and kept attacking the middle lane, leaving Aura completely helpless.

11: 7.

Xie Mingyang won another game.

"Very good, played very well, quite good."

Li Qian praised them generously, saying, "But don't underestimate your opponent before the ball hits the ground."

"In the third game, when it comes to the brink of life and death, Aura will definitely try to fight back. Let's not rush, lest we fall into the opponent's trap."

"First, establish your own rhythm. One is to control him inside the table and prevent him from getting a comfortable start. The other is to defend close to the table, move your feet, and increase your speed."

"Even if you are forced to leave the stage, don't be afraid of it. Don't blindly pursue quality; just be consistent in your performances..."

Speaking of which.

Li Qian paused, looking at Xie Mingyang who remained silent and deep in thought: "I know what you're thinking. You want to learn from Chen Jin's 'stop killing with killing, control violence with violence'?"

Li Qian saw through his thoughts, and Xie Mingyang nodded slightly.

For a fleeting moment, he did have that thought, but he quickly dismissed it.

The fighting style of using violence to stop violence and violence to control violence is based on strength.

Chen Jin's strength is beyond doubt.

With his forehand and backhand power, he is second to none, whether at close, mid, or long distance from the table.

Even when facing a superhumanly strong opponent like Aruna, Chen Jin was still able to go head-to-head with him.

But Xie Mingyang admitted that he couldn't do that at this stage.

Therefore, for Xie Mingyang, taking a steady and pragmatic approach is the best strategy.

"Don't worry, Instructor Li."

Xie Mingyang said, "I will win the game steadily and will not take any risks easily."

"That's good."

Li Qian clapped and shouted, "Go for it!"

In the third game, Ola fought hard and scored two points in a row at the start.

However, Xie Mingyang was not going to tolerate it and quickly retaliated.

A quick serve followed by a powerful forehand smash without any spin left Ola helpless.

This shot seemed to completely shatter Ola's fighting spirit.

Next game.

Xie Mingyang, through his delicate short-range shots and relentless close-to-the-table forehand and backhand fast attacks, completely disrupted Ola's offensive rhythm.

11: 3.

Xie Mingyang won easily.

With a score of 3-0, they successfully defeated Benedek Olaf and advanced to the second round of the qualifying tournament.

(End of this chapter)