Tennis: He's so obedient!

Chapter 182 Breaking into the Top 50: Abundant Rewards and a Stat Boost (Please Subscribe)
Instantly, the reporters in front of them all raised their hands high, as if waiting for a teacher to call their names.

Today was different from before; Chinese reporters only made up half of the press conference room. Keep in mind that in Jiang Hong's previous matches, the press conference room was packed with Chinese reporters.

The reason why there were fewer reporters from China News Service this time compared to the previous events was mainly due to the limited capacity of the press conference hall.

The organizing committee needs to reserve space for some major Spanish and European media outlets.

Previously, Jiang Hongming was virtually unknown.

But things are different now. Jiang Hong is the biggest dark horse of this competition, having upset world number two Nadal, and his popularity has skyrocketed.

Jiang Hong's gaze swept across the area and he spotted a familiar figure—Zhang Sheng.

Is he impersonating a reporter again?

Jiang Hong pointed at Zhang Sheng, indicating that CCTV would ask the first question.

Zhang Sheng stood up, his face still showing excitement, and he even trembled slightly as he spoke.

"Jiang Hong, you have defeated Nadal for the first time, and you are also the highest-ranked player from China to defeat. What would you like to say now?"

Jiang Hong reached out and adjusted the microphone in front of him slightly. "I'm very happy because it proves that my tactics and ideas are feasible!"

Another Reuters reporter immediately pressed Jiang Hong for answers.

"Jiang, at the crucial break point of 40:30 in the second set, you hit an incredible drop shot. What were you thinking at that moment?"

Jiang Hong recalled briefly, "At that time, Nadal and I were locked in a baseline rally, and as everyone knows, his forehand is extremely aggressive."

"If I just stick to defense, it's very easy to run into problems, so I decided to change things up. I noticed that he was positioned quite far back, so I tried to put a short ball down."

The EPSN reporter was clearly still not giving up, and then asked Jiang Hong.

"Jiang, your break point in the second set came from a controversial net shot. Many experts are calling for a rematch. What's your opinion on that?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hong glanced at the other person and then asked directly.

"Which expert are you referring to?"

“Uh…” The EPSN reporter was sweating a little, after all, the expert himself was a fabrication.

However, as a seasoned journalist, he is quite adept at adapting to changing circumstances.

His expression immediately changed, and he said seriously, "As journalists, we should protect the privacy of experts and not disclose their information."

After speaking, he looked at Jiang Hong with great interest.

We await what kind of answer he might give.

“According to Article 37 of the ATP Rules, if a net ball lands in the valid area, and…” Jiang Hong raised his eyebrows and looked at the reporter: “Do you need me to continue reciting this for you?”

Most reporters didn't have any ill intentions towards Jiang Hong, but the Spanish reporters were full of malice.

Ultimately, Jiang Hong named a domestic sports media outlet.

"Jiang Hong, what would you like to say to the viewers and fans in China who stay up late to watch the games?"

Jiang Hong's expression softened slightly, and he earnestly told the reporters, "This victory doesn't just belong to me, it also belongs to you all—every family member, friend, teacher, and fan who cheered me on!"

"If you like tennis, like matches, or like me!" Jiang Hong changed the subject, paused with a smile, and then said loudly, "Then please continue to cheer for me tomorrow!"

After the interview, Jiang Hong didn't linger and immediately returned to the hotel.

I had a meal first, and now I'm actually a bit hungry.

After finishing his meal, Fu Yunlong had already prepared his things.

Then the physical therapy began, with fingers constantly kneading Jiang Hong's muscles.

"Your muscles are a bit stiff today!" she added casually.

"Who can blame us when our opponent is Nadal!" Jiang Hong shrugged.

Fortunately, the match didn't go to a third set, otherwise it would have been considered a victory.

Tomorrow's tough match against Djokovic won't be easy.

Markjee also hurriedly walked in from outside the room, holding Djokovic's information in his hand.

"Brother Jiang, I've gathered information on tomorrow's opponent. Would you like to hear it?"

"Read it!" Jiang Hong gritted his teeth and nodded.

I have to say, physical therapy really does hurt a bit.

Mark Jie stood to the side and began to talk to Jiang Hong about the opponent's situation tomorrow.

Novak Djokovic was born in 1987 and is 20 years old this year!

"Last year's year-end ranking was 16th, and it has now risen to third in the world. This year, it won the Miami Masters and the Rogers Cup, as well as two tour titles. As for the Grand Slams..."

"Djokovic has a very well-rounded technique. His serve and forehand are very strong, and his backhand defense is also excellent. He likes to control the pace of the game."

"Among them, in the Rogers Cup, he defeated the world's top three players at the time: Roddick, Nadal, and Federer!"

Jiang Hong raised an eyebrow. Djokovic had defeated the world's top three players in a row, completing his golden journey.

Now that it's my turn to walk the golden path, taking on the world's top three in a row seems quite reasonable, right?

Mark Jermaine continued, "Therefore, the tennis world currently believes that Djokovic is very likely to become a new force challenging Nadal and Federer."

Hearing this, Fu Yunlong couldn't help but chime in.

"At least he's not as difficult to beat as Nadal, right?"

“That’s not necessarily true!” Jiang Hong shook his head before Mark Jie could answer.

After all, Djokovic is in very hot form today, and tomorrow's big match will definitely not be easy.

After the physical therapy session ended, Jiang Hong stretched.

"system!"

Suddenly, a voice called out in my heart.

I still have a few rewards to claim!
[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the suggestion to enhance the game's tempo. You have gained +1 Advanced Tactical Attribute Point.]

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the suggestion to enhance your second serve offensively. You have gained +1 Advanced Serve Technique Point.]

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the challenge of defeating Nadal. You have received one Golden Treasure Chest.]

Jiang Hong's eyes lit up; as expected of Nadal.

After defeating the boss, the system immediately dropped rewards!
It's such a generous offer! The first two items are all attribute points, which will increase your immediate combat power.

As for the golden treasure chest, Jiang Hong had no idea what he could get from it.

"Open it for me!"

Then a golden light emerged from the panel.

Jiang Hong seemed to hear the words, "Golden Legend."

As the golden light dissipated, Jiang Hong finally saw the reward.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have gained +3 Advanced Physical Attribute Points!]

Instantly, Jiang Hong's eyes lit up.

Just when you're feeling sleepy, someone brings you a pillow!

My ball skills are all thanks to my daily hard work.

"System, give me more!"

Physical fitness: 89 → 92

[Tactics: 84→85]

[Serve: 89→90]

Jiang Hong nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, not bad. Now the odds of winning against Djokovic are much better."

Defeating Nadal not only boosted Jiang Hong's attributes by so much.

Moreover, Jiang Hong's points and bonuses have also increased significantly.

The Madrid Masters semi-finalists earn 225 points, and the qualifying rounds earn 15 points, for a total of 240 points.

This is almost equivalent to the points earned by a Gold Series champion.

The prize money for the top four finishers in the Madrid Masters is $100,000.

Of course, for Jiang Hong, who has endorsements and sponsorships, and is backed by the huge Chinese market, and will continue to attract advertisers, this is not a particularly large amount.

Jiang Hong was most pleased with her rise in the ATP rankings.

With a total of 702 points, he finally broke into the top 50 in the ATP rankings, reaching number 47.

"Next goal: Top ten in the world!"

Step by step, I climbed to the highest position.

However, players ranked 26th or higher in the ATP rankings generally have over 1000 points.

Moreover, the further you go, the greater the difference in points becomes.

However, it's more interesting to start from 1000th place and work your way up!
Jiang Hong turned on his computer and logged into a domestic website.

Instantly, a news article popped up in the bottom right corner of my screen.

Jiang Hong narrowly lost to Nadal in the quarterfinals of the Madrid Masters.

When Jiang Hong saw this news, he rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had seen it wrong.

Or.

"I crossed again?"

"Could it be Little Blackie?"

Then, filled with curiosity, Jiang Hong clicked into the news.

After reading it, Jiang Hong's expression became even more subtle.

He began to doubt the editor's stance.

The article didn't actually criticize Jiang Hong at all; on the contrary, it seriously discussed the rationale behind Jiang Hong's loss and called on the audience and fans to be tolerant of him.

"Hiss!" Jiang Hong suddenly took a deep breath, a possibility popping into his mind.

I never imagined that journalists in this era could be so incredibly captivating and attention-grabbing.

The comments section was full of criticisms directed at the editor, numbering in the thousands.

At this moment, I was experiencing both pain and joy.

He had already written the script before the competition, but after the competition, it turned out to be completely different from what he had originally expected.

So I had to rush out a new draft, but when I uploaded it, I made a mistake.

An hour later, I realized I had uploaded the wrong file.

When I tried to request a retraction, the website locked my submission.

Because this article was so popular, it couldn't be withdrawn. However, the website promised to pay him based on the number of views.

Scroll down to see other breaking news and headlines.

Sina Sports: China's 18-year-old prodigy causes a Madrid disaster, Nadal bows down on clay.

Sohu Sports: He made Spain sleepless at night with a victory.

Jiang Hong closed the news page and went to the Baidu Tieba forum.
It's a familiar tennis forum, but the background image is different.

Upon closer inspection, Jiang Hong discovered that the background image had been changed to a picture of himself raising his arms in triumph after defeating Nadal.

The most eye-catching one was a post about Jiang Hong.

Breaking News! Jiang Shen wins in straight sets, defeating Nadal in Madrid.

The netizens below are having a heated discussion about the competition.

"I'm so excited! I just finished watching C5, Jiang Shen is awesome!"

"Wow, Jiang Shen defeated Nadal, so he can be considered the number one player in Asia now, right?"

"I agree, who disagrees?"

"The Chinese tennis world is divided into two eras: the Jiang Hongqian era and the Jiang Hong era!"

It wasn't just the tennis forum; people in other forums were also discussing Jiang Hong's match.

Many people in the forum are asking for torrents, specifically video torrents related to Jiang Hong's match.

Overnight, Jiang Hong gained hundreds of thousands of long-time fans. He also noticed that many users from other forums had migrated to his site.

[Nadal's Chinese Fan Club: Although it's sad, congratulations to Jiang Shen! Awesome!]

[Diba sends its congratulations! My factory... oh, no, I mean, my Jiang is awesome! This wave is called 'Dawn Breaks'!]

[A congratulatory message from Dorm 404...]

[...A congratulatory telegram was sent from Taocun Elementary School]

Wait a minute, Jiang Hong realized that this elementary school looked familiar. Wasn't this his own elementary school?

That evening, the moderator specifically drafted several new rules for the forum.

Once Hei Jianghong's comments are discovered, he will be permanently banned immediately.

The main reason is that as Jiang Hong's fame grows, so does the number of haters.

After all, even money has its share of people who don't like or are uninterested in it, let alone Jiang Hong.

For example, Jiang Hong had previously asked Mark Jie if he liked money.

He said he had no interest in money...

[Little Jiang, having heeded advice, is here to share some good news! Tomorrow he faces Novak Djokovic, the world's third-ranked player. Any suggestions from you guys?]

The moment the post was published, countless replies appeared below.

Tonight, the tennis bar is destined to be sleepless.

"Wow, it's the living Jiang Shen! Let's take a picture together!"

"High-energy warning! Wild ginger god has appeared!"

"I strongly suspect that Jiang Shen is cheating, I demand a urine test!"

"The urine test is complete; there wasn't a single drop of urine in the doping test."

"I was in Spain at the time, but unfortunately I couldn't get a ticket. I specifically found a bar to watch the game, and everyone was cheering for Jiang Shen!"

"Upstairs, isn't Spain Nadal's territory? Aren't you afraid of getting beaten up?"

Jiang Hong continued scrolling down to reply to the post.

Jiang Hong finally saw a post with suggestions.

"I have no advice for Jiang Shen, I just hope that he can meet Federer in the final!"

[Ding! A suggestion has been received. You have successfully defeated your opponent and will meet Federer in the final!]

Jiang Hong raised an eyebrow.

Do netizens have so much confidence in me now?
Or are you looking down on Djokovic?

And what if Federer falters? Wouldn't I be unable to complete the mission?

Although there were many other suggestions later, none of them were reliable.

"There's no other choice!" Jiang Hong sighed. "Include it!"

After leaving the forum, Jiang Hong wasn't sleepy at all; it was only a little past 10 p.m. in Spain.

The match against Nadal mainly made Jiang Hong a little excited.

Afterwards, Jiang Hong looked at other websites.

Jiang Hong saw a very interesting discussion on the Mop forum.

"A Rational Discussion: Is Jiang Hong's Back-of-the-Loop DSLR a Copy of Federer's Style?"

Jiang Hong was stunned when he saw this guy.

Can playing techniques and movements be copied?

They even discussed it in thousands of posts, analyzing each GIF they found on foreign forums.

Looking at the discussion below, Jiang Hong even doubted whether he had actually plagiarized.

After the alarm rang, it was time to rest. I was surprised to find that I had been watching for so long.

Since there was a competition tomorrow, Jiang Hong didn't continue surfing and instead took a rest.

It would be hilarious if I played basketball with panda eyes tomorrow.

……

While Jiang Hong was resting, reporters from various newspapers were still rushing to finish their articles.

Jiang Hong's victory over Nadal this time can be said to have ruined the chances of most journalists who like to write their articles in advance.

The next day, both official media and sports media gave the game extensive coverage.

The People's Daily even dedicated two sections to reporting on the competition.

First, there's the top news item in the bottom right corner of the front page.

A historic breakthrough for Chinese tennis.

— 18-year-old star Jiang Hong defeated world number two Nadal to advance to the semifinals of the Madrid Masters.

"Our reporter (Madrid) reports: On the night of October 19th, local time, at the Madrid Masters arena, with indomitable fighting spirit and superb skills... a historic moment was created for Chinese men's tennis."

The front page featured a photo of Jiang Hong competing, praising him highly and ultimately elevating the message to the revitalization of Chinese sports.

The sports section dedicated the entire page to a comprehensive introduction of Jiang Hong from his student days to his professional career, concluding by affirming the success of the integration of education and sports.

Xinhua News Agency issued two news flashes.

Breaking News: Chinese player Jiang Hong advances to the Madrid Masters semifinals

Commentary Article: "Jiang Hong's Inspiration for Chinese Professional Sports"

After seeing the reports from Xinhua News Agency and People's Daily in Jiang Hong's hometown county.

A working group was immediately formed that morning.

The two main leaders of the county immediately went to Jiang Hong's home to express their condolences.

He expressed his gratitude to Jiang Hong's parents for raising such an outstanding athlete and said that they could come to him for help with any problems.

Although everyone understood that it was just politeness.

Besides, Jiang Hong's family never really needed their help.

Since Sports Weekly had not yet reached its weekly publication period, it directly released a special edition featuring Jiang Hong.

Four large red characters were written on it.

Lofty ambitions!
The article seeks out retired veterans and provides a comprehensive analysis of the match between Jiang Hong and Nadal.

Even the Football News reported on the match.

Finally, it was noted that while the Chinese men's tennis team, known as the "Hidden Dragon," has risen to prominence, the Chinese men's football team, known as the "Phoenix Chick," should also strive for improvement.

After all, at this point, fans hadn't given up hope for the Chinese men's football team; they felt there was still hope, and that the team would become stronger in the future.

But unexpectedly, this is now the best year of the next twenty years.

The Qin Province Daily featured Jiang Hong's match as its front-page headline.

Athletes from Shaanxi Province triumph in Madrid, setting a new Chinese sports record.

CCTV5 deliberately cut out the original live broadcast of table tennis and gave special coverage to Jiang Hong's match.

They also invited Zhang Sheng, a long-time commentator for Jiang Hong's matches, to be a special commentator and interact with the host of the live broadcast.

Of course, Zhang Sheng, as a special commentator, knows what's going on.

He immediately transformed into the number one Jiang fanboy and started praising him to the skies.

In addition to domestic media, sports media from various countries reported on the match afterward.

BBC – Breaking news.

Breaking News: A Mysterious Force from the East Sweeps Madrid! The Nadal Dynasty Faces Its Strongest Challenger: This Chinese Teenager Named Jiang Hong May Forge a New Order in Tennis.

It's not that they really think Jiang Hong is awesome; it's just their usual behavior of stirring up trouble.

Asahi Shimbun (Japan)

"伝説の初まり!" The Chinese から appears and the れたテニスの superpower is revealed, and the ナダルを is broken! 》

As expected of the chuunibyou (delusional) Japanese, the accompanying image is a cartoon version of Jiang Hong, with a dragon-shaped phantom appearing behind him.

Chosun Ilbo (Korea) - Breaking News

The victory of China Open rising star Jiang Hong has attracted global attention; experts analyze that her playing style is 87% similar to the South Korean training system.

Early in the morning, Mark Jie stormed into Jiang Hong's room and said...

“Brother Jiang, those Spanish newspapers are slandering you, and Madrid Tennis Voice radio is even worse.”

Jiang Hong had anticipated the actions of the Madrid newspapers.

After all, if you can't have the grapes, you'll definitely say they're sour.

"Let me see!"

He took the newspaper from Mark's hand and glanced at it.

The first one is the famous Marca newspaper.

The front page headline of Marca was about the match between Jiang Hong and Nadal.

A Lucky Victory and a Weary King

"The dark horse from China stole the victory, while the true king, Nadal, was absent due to fatigue."

Jiang Hong chuckled. The title and subtitle were indeed quite sensational!

Then, I looked at the content.

"Last night, the Madrid stadium witnessed a tennis 'theft.' Jiang Hong from China, rather than winning the match, simply happened to appear at Rafa's most fatigued moment. Look at the statistics: Rafa's unforced errors were 47% higher than his season average, making this a classic case of 'self-destruction'..."

“We must ‘praise’ Jiang Hong’s tactics—flat shots that are utterly devoid of beauty, countless gambles at the net, and that decisive, lucky shot that just grazed the net.”

"His tennis was full of utilitarian calculations, but lacked the artistry and passion that the sport should have. While Rafa drew a rainbow over Madrid with his forehand, that Chinese man was just drawing cold straight lines with a pencil."

utilitarian tennis, destructive tennis...

His tennis is art!
Jiang Hong's eyes were a little strange; this line of reasoning seemed vaguely familiar.

Pick up the next newspaper, AS.

If we lose this match, then we'll just resort to underhanded tactics and start discussing the future.

Polite boos: How Madrid 'welcomed' its new hero

Jiang Hong ignored Spanish fans and acted arrogantly, leading experts to question whether his peak was short-lived.

"At the post-match press conference, the Chinese champion responded to the world's shock with the simplest words, 'This is just the beginning.'"

"This almost indifferent response was interpreted by many journalists on the scene as Eastern arrogance. He did not show enough respect for Rafa's greatness, nor did he show gratitude for the applause from the Madrid audience, which went from hostile to reluctant."

"The former Spanish Davis Cup captain analyzed on our program: 'Jiang Hong's playing style takes an astonishing toll on his body. His peak period may have been as brilliant and short-lived as a shooting star. We've seen too many examples of players who rely on stamina and speed, often starting to decline sharply after the age of 25. Rafa's tennis, however, is sustainable.'"

Jiang Hong's expression became even stranger.

A player who relies on physical strength and speed, isn't this the kind of player that Rondar is looking for?
The last one is a CD, which you put on your computer and play.

In prime-time sports talk shows, the conversations between hosts and guests are often highly contentious.

Host: "Should we ask the ATP to conduct more stringent out-of-competition drug tests on certain 'suddenly rising' players?"

As a guest who is a former professional player: "I don't mean to offend, but when you see a player's serve speed and baseline rally ability improve in just six months in an 'atypical' way, it's our right to raise reasonable questions. His rate of improvement is just too exaggerated."

Host: "So, we can interpret this defeat as Rafah being tripped up by an obstacle that used 'unconventional' methods on his path to a greater goal?"

Guest: "Your summary is very poetic, and perhaps closer to the truth."

It was practically an open declaration that Jiang Hong had used illegal drugs, and these local TV stations didn't care about the impact at all.

On the contrary, the major newspapers tend to be more restrained.

Jiang Hong looked up at Mark Jie beside him and said, "Call Li Gong. IMG should be able to handle this, right?"

Mark nodded quickly and said, "I'll go right away!"

Jiang Hong knew that professional tasks should be left to professionals.

(End of this chapter)