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

Chapter 341 Fighting tigers requires brothers, and going into battle requires fathers and sons to fight together!
Xie Mingyang came back from a 0-2 deficit to defeat Zhang Yuzhen 3-2.

It quickly became a trending topic.

Compared to last time, the trending topics page now features many more words of praise.

"Zhang Wuji actually lost to an unknown young player from the Chinese national table tennis team?"

"A rising star in Chinese table tennis? Besides Chen Jin, Xie Mingyang has emerged, and his future is promising."

"Jang Woo-jin came back from 0-2 down to win 3-2; this young Chinese table tennis player is really something."

"It turns out that the development of men's table tennis talent pool is a generational gap."

"You're so cool, Mommy loves you, muah!"

……

Zhang Jiahao held his phone, glanced at the trending topics, snorted coldly, and said with a disdainful look, "These trending topics are obviously bought."

"Old Xie really played well in this game."

Chen Jin smiled.

In terms of strength, Xie Mingyang is clearly inferior to Zhang Yuzhen.

However, Xie Mingyang was still able to go toe-to-toe with Zhang Yuzhen during the forehand rally phase.

Finally, they cracked this tough nut.

It must be said that Xie Mingyang's performance was outstanding.

"cut!"

Zhang Jiahao curled his lip, "If it weren't for Brother Jin being his sparring partner, could he have beaten Zhang Yuzhen?"

In a few crucial moments, Zhang Yuzhen went all in, sprinting down the straight line with a powerful side-step.

Originally, this was his trademark.

In a competition, once unleashed, it is enough to awe the heavens and move even the gods, making one invincible.

But this time, he was outmaneuvered by Xie Mingyang.

Every time Zhang Yuzhen sprinted straight ahead, Xie Mingyang perfectly neutralized it.

Position, angle, shooting style, timing... Xie Mingyang seemed to have anticipated his route and blocked it in advance.

This was something Zhang Yuzhen hadn't expected.

In the decisive game, they didn't even dare to easily turn sideways and charge forward, which would be equivalent to crippling themselves.

According to Zhang Jiahao, Chen Jin played an indispensable role in Xie Mingyang's ability to come back from 0-2 down to defeat Zhang Yuzhen, which made him a trending topic and earned him recognition from table tennis fans.

"It's also because I'm not qualified for singles."

Zhang Jiahao was somewhat unwilling and said angrily, "If I could participate in the singles, I could also beat Zhang Yuzhen."

He harbored resentment.

After all, Huang Youzheng, who lost to him in the National Championships, is eligible for the singles competition at the Singapore Grand Slam.

Despite being a national champion, he could only participate in doubles.

Even their doubles qualification was thanks to Chen Jin.

How could he accept such treatment?

"Stop complaining."

Chen Jin patted Zhang Jiahao on the shoulder, "Compared to Ding Xiaowei and the others, you're already considered lucky."

All of them came from the same group of qualifying tournaments. Putting aside Chen Jin, Xie Mingyang and Zhang Jiahao are already qualified to participate in tournaments like the Singapore Grand Slam.

But what about Ding Xiaowei?
He can only serve as a sparring partner for the women's team.

They don't even have the chance to compete.

"That's true."

Zhang Jiahao grinned, and his mood immediately improved.

During the closed training, they met Ding Xiaowei and the others reminisced together.

Although he was a sparring partner for the women's team, Ding Xiaowei's sparring partners were key players such as Sun Yingsha and Wang Manyu.

Ding Xiaowei is confident that gold will always shine.

For now, he's temporarily staying with the women's team as a sparring partner. If he gets a chance, one day he'll soar to great heights.

Chen Jin neither confirmed nor denied this, only offering encouragement and blessings.

"You'll be making your debut tomorrow at six o'clock in the afternoon."

Chen Jin smiled and asked, "Are you ready?"

"rest assured."

Zhang Jiahao snapped to attention, his eyes resolute. "When summoned, we will fight; when we fight, we will win!"

"But you, Brother Jin..."

At this point, a look of worry appeared on his face, "After the men's doubles, there's still a singles match. Playing two events back-to-back, can you handle it?"

Chen Jin's opponent in the second round of singles is French veteran Simon Gauzy.

In the second round of the 2019 World Table Tennis Championships men's singles, he upset Xu Xin and became famous overnight.

Moreover, Simon Gauzy is also a troublemaker in the table tennis world, having publicly questioned WTT rules, referee decisions, and Wang Chuqin's obstructed serve on multiple occasions.

Although ranked low in the world, his playing style is characterized by mid-to-long range shots, including high balls and mid-to-long range counter-attacks, combining power and spin, making him extremely difficult to deal with.

"I'm used to it."

Chen Jin smiled calmly, "Two matches a day is actually not bad."

Compared to the World Youth Championships with five matches a day, this schedule is indeed not much.

Of course, the two are not comparable in strength.

While talking.

With a creak, the door to the lounge was pushed open.

Xie Mingyang, covered in sweat, walked in accompanied by Li Qian.

……

Six pm.

The doubles match started on time.

Their opponents were Singaporean players Zhou Zheyu and Cai Shaoheng.

Arrive backstage ten minutes early to wait.

Chen Jin crossed his arms, sat upright in the chair, and closed his eyes to rest.

Zhang Jiahao was sitting to his left.

Sudden.

I felt a slight tremor.

"earthquake?"

Chen Jin frowned slightly and opened his eyes.

Turn around and look.

Zhang Jiahao's body was taut like a fully drawn bowstring, and his legs were trembling like leaves.

"what happened?"

Chen Jin laughed and said, "Nervous?"

"Uh……"

Zhang Jiahao looked up and gestured with his finger, "It feels a little bit like that."

Before even stepping onto the field, beads of sweat the size of soybeans were already seeping from his forehead, soaking his bangs and sideburns.

He had played in many matches before.

Opening point tournament, Provincial Games, Park Championship, Youth Championship, WTT Regular Challenge, National Championship, World Youth Championship...

However, for a tournament of the Singapore Grand Slam level, he still had to wait for the grand finale.

More importantly, Zhang Jiahao knew perfectly well that this Singapore Grand Slam was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him.

In terms of skill, he is no match for Chen Jin.

In terms of resources, he is not as good as Xie Mingyang.

Only by seizing every hard-won opportunity to perform and show their abilities can they gain more chances to compete in the future.

The pressure is self-evident.

Tension is inevitable.

Having lived with Zhang Jiahao for many years and supported each other, how could Chen Jin not understand Zhang Jiahao's thoughts? He reached out and put his hand on the latter's shoulder.

"With me here, you can rest assured."

Chen Jin's words were filled with unwavering confidence as he said, enunciating each word clearly, "We're like brothers, inseparable even when fighting tigers."

"Ah."

Zhang Jiahao nodded emphatically and added, "Father and son must fight side by side."

Immediately, they roused themselves.

They didn't see anything wrong with what they said.

At this moment.

Staff members stepped forward to remind both contestants to prepare to enter the arena.

"Whoo~"

Zhang Jiahao took a deep breath.

She stood up and straightened her clothes.

"come on!"

Chen Jin extended his right palm.

"come on!"

Zhang Jiahao's voice was deep.

With a snap, their fingers clasped tightly, feeling the warmth of each other's palms. Inside the vast arena, the lights shone brightly.

When the host called out the names "Chen Jin" and "Zhang Jiahao", the two walked side by side.

The stands were packed.

The cheers were deafening.

Experiencing such a scene for the first time, Zhang Jiahao felt dizzy, his heart raced, and he almost couldn't walk properly.

"Hold still."

Chen Jin said in a low voice, "It's being broadcast live, so many people are watching, we can't afford to lose face."

"Ah."

Zhang Jiahao held his head high and puffed out his chest, feigning composure.

As soon as he stepped off the stairs, he lost his focus and walked straight toward his opponent's rest area on the sidelines.

Seeing this, Chen Jin quickly grabbed him and said, "You've gone the wrong way."

"Oh."

Zhang Jiahao's face turned bright red. He stuck out his tongue, so embarrassed he wished he could disappear into the ground.

A burst of laughter erupted from the audience.

At the same time, suspicions arose.

"Who is this person who is partnering with Chen Jin in men's doubles? I don't think I've seen him before."

"Judging from his appearance, is this his first time participating in a competition? Is he really up to the task?"

"Damn it, I suddenly have a bad feeling. Could Chen Jin's first defeat be tonight?"

"Given Chen Jin's current strength and achievements, the only pairing he should have with in men's doubles is Lin Gaoyuan, if not Wang Chuqin. How could it be an unknown player? What was the coaching staff thinking?"

"I'm afraid he's just another one with connections, some rich kid who was handed to him from somewhere."

……

In an instant, the doubts about Zhang Jiahao spread from the scene to online.

Of course, Zhang Jiahao neither heard nor saw any of this.

They arrived at their own sideline rest area.

As an off-site mentor, Wang Hao had been waiting for a long time.

He had complete confidence in Chen Jin.

However, this was Zhang Jiahao's first time participating in such a competition, and his nervousness was visibly apparent.

"Today's opponent is not very strong. I believe that with your teamwork, as long as you play slowly, you will win almost certainly."

Wang Hao encouraged Zhang Jiahao, "Listen to Chen Jin more often on the field."

"Don't just stand there, you have to move, you have to run."

"Pay attention to positioning, and be ready to cover for your teammates."

"Be firm. If it's time to get started, then get started. Don't hesitate."

After a series of instructions.

The referee reminded them, "Time."

"come on!"

Wang Hao clapped enthusiastically to encourage the two players, saying, "Keep your eyes on the ball."

Holding a towel, they walked towards the competition field.

Zhang Jiahao couldn't help but glance around, only to see a sea of ​​people, a dense, dark mass.

The atmosphere at the event was much more intense than that of the National Championships.

"Don't worry about anything else."

Chen Jin lowered his voice, "Focus on the game."

"Yes."

Zhang Jiahao took a deep breath.

They walked to the referee, picked up their rackets, and shook hands gently with their opponents.

Toss a coin to guess who will go first.

"Red or blue?"

The referee looked to the left, then to the right, and asked.

As the host, Zhou Zheyu gestured for Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao to guess first.

"Brother Jin."

Zhang Jiahao asked in a low voice, "Do you want the right to serve or the right to choose sides?"

"Right to serve".

Chen Jin did not hesitate.

"OK."

Zhang Jiahao puffed out his chest and said to the referee, "Reed, I like Reed."

"Red?"

The referee flicked his finger and tossed the coin.

Upon closer inspection, it was indeed red.

Chen Jin and Zhang Jiahao naturally took the first-round serve.

Immediately following was a warm-up sparring session.

Taking this opportunity, Zhang Jiahao gradually got into the game and became more and more focused.

A minute passed quickly.

Game start.

0: 0.

Zhang Jiahao serves.

Zhou Zheyu was the one receiving the serve.

Diagonal, shorter on the lower side.

Zhou Zheyu gently placed a short pass down the middle.

Chen Jin quickly stepped forward and twisted the opponent's left side of the table with his backhand.

Despite being out of position, Cai Shaoheng seized the opportunity to slice a backspin shot.

Knowing that the ball had a lot of spin, Zhang Jiahao didn't dare to be careless. He moved his feet and seized the landing point.

Squat down, lower your right arm.

"laugh!"

As the ball descends to its mid-descent, use your fingers and wrist to accelerate the friction and execute a high loop.

However, he ultimately overestimated the spin intensity of a slice shot.

The ball went out of bounds.

0: 1.

"boom!"

Seeing that he had missed the return shot, Zhang Jiahao suddenly jumped up and kicked hard.

His eyes were filled with regret and self-blame as he looked at Chen Jin.

"fine."

Chen Jin comforted him, "Next time you encounter a ball like that, don't be so cautious, just go for it."

"clear."

Zhang Jiahao reached out and slapped his cheeks a few times.

I swayed in place, yelling "Ho ho ha hey!" twice, forcing myself to calm down.

Second serve.

Do not forward.

Zhou Zheyu is short-sighted.

The control was slightly poor, and the elevation was slightly too high.

If it were any other player, they would most likely have handled this ball conservatively.

But Chen Jin is different.

In his dark pupils, killing intent suddenly surged, and Chen Jin leaped up, launching a powerful attack.

"Snapped!"

The sound of the sound penetrating the board was deafening.

The ping-pong ball, like a cannonball, carrying a destructive aura, hurtled towards the opponent's center line.

Before Cai Shaoheng could react, the ball had already flown in front of him.

He tried to block, but missed.

The white ball, like a cannonball, slammed into his left arm.

"Sigh~"

Cai Shaoheng grimaced and gasped.

Looking down, I saw a bloody mark the size of a coin on my arm.

It quickly turned bluish-black.

"Damn it."

Cai Shaoheng looked up at Chen Jin, a look of shock flashing in his eyes, "How can this kid's flying explosive attack be so powerful?"

(End of this chapter)