Tennis: He's so obedient!

Chapter 203 The draw results are out, and the first round features an old acquaintance—it's you again!
The media, with their cameras and microphones, pointed at the event organizers who were drawing lots.

Many players were clenching their fists, appearing very tense.

The draw has a significant impact on players.

After all, not all players aim to win the highest honor, the championship.

Many players aim to win bonuses and accumulate points.

If the opponent is weak, the outcome will be drastically different with each additional round.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the draw ceremony for the Paris Masters is now officially open!"

The ceremony began with an announcement from the event chairman.

Two players are exceptions, with their positions in the draw fixed: Federer and Nadal.

The number one seed, Federer, was placed at the very top of the draw, guarding the upper half of the draw, while Nadal was placed at the very bottom, guarding the lower half of the draw.

To avoid the first and second seeds meeting too early, which would make the match less interesting.

Novak Djokovic, the world's third-ranked player, was drawn into the top half of the draw, while Nikolai Davydenko, the world's fourth-ranked player, was placed in the bottom half.

As names appeared one by one, Jiang Hong's draw sheet finally came into view.

He was placed in the bottom 3/4 half of the draw, and if he doesn't get eliminated in the first round, he will face his old acquaintance Davydenko in the second round.

His draw was definitely not a good one.

After the draw was finalized, Djokovic walked over to Jiang Hong and patted him on the shoulder.

"Jiang, you're really lucky! You actually drew a qualifier in the first round!" Djokovic joked.

That's right, Jiang Hong's first opponent was a Q, which means a qualifier.

However, the qualifying rounds have not officially started yet, so Jiang Hong does not know who he will face in the first round.

In response to Djokovic's teasing, Jiang Hong shrugged and said, "Novak, this may not be a good thing. If I encounter a dark horse, or if the opponent is in hot form after two rounds, it will be quite difficult to get through."

Djokovic turned to look at him, surprised, and said, "Jiang, the match hasn't even started yet, and you already lack confidence?"

"Of course not, I've always been very confident about winning the championship." Then, he changed the subject and jumped to his opponent: "Novak, to be honest, I envy you more. As a seeded player, you were waiting for us to fight hard in the second round, while you were able to wait and rest."

Djokovic did not deny this, saying, "Indeed, but I feel that it won't be long before you're able to enjoy the treatment of a seeded player."

"Then I'll take your good wishes!"

Just as Jiang Hong and Djokovic were chatting, a staff member from the organizing committee suddenly came over.

Jiang Hong and Djokovic should attend the media event following the draw ceremony.

After winning the Madrid Masters, Jiang Hong gained some fame.

Therefore, they were brought in to promote the Paris Masters and strive for more ticket sales and viewership.

However, Federer, the biggest box office draw this time, was playing in his hometown and did not come to support the organizing committee.

If we're talking about the top four in the world, only Nadal and Djokovic are represented.

Next, we took some group photos and asked a few simple questions.

After it was over, Jiang Hong returned to the hotel and became engrossed in training again, unable to extricate himself.

As soon as the draw for the Paris Masters was released, Chinese netizens immediately began discussing it.

"Great news! Jiang Shen's opponent in the first round is a qualifier, so it should be easier for him."

"However, this draw isn't too good either; we'll be facing Davydenko in the second round."

"It's alright. Jiang Shen was able to beat his opponent at the China Open, so he's definitely fine now."

"You can't say that, after all, Davydenko was clearly not in good condition at the time!"

Despite ongoing debates about the quality of the draw, the Paris Masters has certainly generated a lot of buzz.

……

October 28th, the night before the start of the Paris Masters.

Jiang Hong logged into the forum.

Following standard procedure, I briefed everyone on my itinerary.

Although, according to domestic media, Jiang Hong's competition journey has already been thoroughly investigated.

However, Jiang Hong still made a special effort to post a message.

With fingers tapping on the keyboard, a post quickly appeared on the forum.

[Urgent notice! Urgent notice! I've taken your advice, Xiao Jiang, and I'm going to compete in the Paris Masters tomorrow. Any suggestions from you cyber coaches, entertainment enthusiasts, mystical experts, or data analysts?]

After all, I didn't inform my fellow forum members when I went to participate in the Tokyo Open, and I was criticized for it.

Therefore, Jiang Hong made a special trip to inform them.

Most of the suggestions under this post are rather abstract and have little reference value.

……

With the opening ceremony concluded, the Paris Masters officially began.

With the qualifiers over, Jiang Hong's opponent has finally been determined.

Del Potro!
Yes, an old acquaintance.

Jiang Hong's opponent in the first round of the Madrid Masters was also that person.

Originally, he was also a Grand Slam winner in the timeline.

However, it's uncertain whether this achievement can still be attained in this timeline.

Although the two sides are still facing each other in the first round, their situations have changed.

At the Madrid Masters, Del Potro was ranked higher than Jiang Hong.

Jiang Hong was a challenger who fought his way through the qualifying rounds, but now that he has won the championship, everything has changed.

Jiang Hong is firmly in the main competition, waiting for Del Potro to emerge from the qualifiers.

To be honest, Jiang Hong was actually looking forward to facing his opponent again.

His powerful forehand is still very challenging.

However, Del Potro's expectations were quite different from Jiang Hong's.

Only one thought occupied my mind: "Why is it you again?"

He caused himself to be eliminated in the first round back in the Madrid Masters.

Now, even at the Paris Masters, the persistent ghosts are still hindering me.

Although Del Potro knew that this was the draw decided by the tournament organizers.

However, he still couldn't help having a headache.

Of course, Del Potro will not choose to sit idly by and wait for his doom.

Although back then, he was swept out of the competition by Jiang Hong in two straight sets.

However, the score was very close, with one set ending 7-5 and the other 6-4.

Moreover, Del Potro felt that he had only narrowly lost, and if he were given another chance, victory was not impossible.

In the first round of the competition, the seeded players automatically received a bye and advanced to the next round.

When faced with media outlets eager to create news, they automatically turned their attention to Jiang Hong.

A mysterious Eastern power, the newly crowned champion of the Madrid Masters, and a miraculous tournament journey.

At that moment, Jiang Hong's opponent, Del Potro, was being interviewed.

"Actually, I wasn't entirely without a chance to win in Madrid before."

"After losing the match, I improved my skills and studied Jiang Hong's techniques."

"I'm a qualifier? Jiang Hong was a qualifier back then, and he could do it, so why can't I?" "If I had played one more round in the first round of the Madrid Masters, the result might have been completely different."

When the media interviewed Del Potro, they deliberately acted as if they looked down on him and implied that he might be eliminated in the first round again.

Del Potro immediately launched a counterattack.

Although Del Potro is quite humble, he was still somewhat annoyed by the fact that everyone was pessimistic about him before the match.

After all, it would be impossible to become a future Grand Slam champion without a strong competitive spirit.

After all, players who lack competitiveness cannot reach the top.

Moreover, Del Potro wasn't exaggerating; he did indeed conduct research on Jiang Hong's technology.

Well, in the end, I still couldn't think of a good way to restrict the other party.

However, his own serve wouldn't make things easy for Jiang Hong either.

Even reporters from China came to join the fun, asking, "Mr. Del Potro, what are your expectations for this match against Jiang Hong?"

“Three sets!” Del Potro’s gaze was very firm as he held up three fingers: “Regardless of the outcome, I think we will at least go to the third set before we can determine the winner.”

Del Potro gradually calmed down and stated his goal for the match.

The biggest goal is to beat Jiang Hong, but at the very least, we should be better than last time and at least go to the third game.

"Nadel Potro, what is your impression of Jiang Hong?" the Chinese reporter continued to press.

“Intelligent, powerful, and talented!” Del Potro gave his answer without the slightest hesitation.

"He won his first Masters title at the age of eighteen, while I am a year older than him and have not even won a single tour title."

Del Potro was a little disappointed, but he quickly cheered up again.

"But I believe I will soon win my tour title!"

There was one more thing Del Potro didn't say.

Even the Masters title that belongs to me!

Jiang Hong's appearance this time did indeed provoke Del Potro.

However, Del Potro won a major championship in 2009, but it wasn't until nine years later, in 2018, that he won his first Masters title.

Del Potro is also the player with the most world number one victories, yet he has never been ranked number one in the world.

As Jiang Hong gave his pre-match interview, the press conference room was instantly packed with people.

The organizing committee was overjoyed, because they were more worried about having too many people than too few!

Special staff were assigned to sort out and guide the personnel on site.

Finally, everything was ready.

A French journalist was the first to ask Jiang Hong a question, "Jiang, you won the Madrid Masters and immediately came to participate in the Paris Masters. Could you tell us what your goal is this time?"

"Champion!" Jiang Hong chuckled lightly and said seriously.

The two simple words, like a hand grenade, were thrown directly into the crowd.

Instantly, it caused an uproar.

All the reporters' eyes lit up instantly; they had initially thought it was just something like "doing what you can."

Although Jiang Hong is usually very confident, he wouldn't set such a big goal before the game has even started.

This is a Masters tournament, not a regular tour event!

The world's top 50 athletes basically all came out in force.

Moreover, the Paris Masters is the last Masters tournament of the year.

Many contestants are putting in their best effort, hoping to make a name for themselves at this crucial moment.

Of course, many players also experience a decline in form towards the end of the year.

However, winning the championship is still very difficult.

One by one, the reporters began writing furiously.

Is Jiang, a Chinese player, arrogant in his bid for the Paris Masters title, or simply displaying strength?

Blinded by the Madrid Masters? Yet another shooting star in tennis?

Countless news headlines had already appeared in their minds.

what?
You said that if the other side, Jiang Hong, cannot achieve the goals set in his pre-match statement.

This is fantastic news for these journalists!
These journalists now have a new angle to report from.

If Jiang Hong, the newly crowned champion of Madrid, is eliminated in the first round, he will probably be crushed to the core of the earth.

An American reporter standing nearby immediately followed up with, "Jiang, you said your goal is the championship. Do you think the other players are no match for you?"

焯!
He set a trap for Jiang Hong the moment he opened his mouth.

Are you trying to draw attention to me right before the match even starts?
Hearing this, Jiang Hong wasn't in a hurry. He just chuckled and said, "This reporter, do you think that any of the players who came to participate in the Paris Masters aren't aiming for the championship, but just for the first round?"

"Since these are goals, we should set them high, after all... what if we can achieve them!"

The American reporter was somewhat disappointed by Jiang Hong's answer; he hadn't taken the bait.

The reporter from Huaxia immediately stepped forward to ask another question.

"Jiang Hong, what do you think of your opponent today, Del Potro? You two met in the first round of the Madrid Masters."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hong said very seriously, "Del Potro is an excellent player, especially his forehand, which is very threatening. I heard that he has also trained specifically to counter my technique, so I have to be careful."

He then shrugged and looked at the group of reporters, saying, "If I'm eliminated in the first round, I hope you'll all be lenient with me!"

Although reporters kept saying he was unlikely to be eliminated early.

However, Jiang Hong noticed the expectation in the eyes of the reporters.

……

The match between Jiang Hong and Del Potro was originally scheduled to start at 18 PM.

However, since the previous player's match had not yet finished, their match time was also postponed.

Postponement of match times is very common in tennis.

Since there are no seeded players in the first round, neither Federer nor Nadal will play.

Therefore, Jiang Hong was directly and unsurprisingly assigned to the center court of the Belsey Stadium.

It can accommodate 20,000 spectators, which is much larger than the Madrid Stadium.

Finally, the last match ended.

Two French wildcard entrants were drawn against each other, resulting in a three-game match.

Jiang Hong would never believe it wasn't intentional.

It's obvious that the two wildcard picks collided, directly guaranteeing one of them a spot in the second round.

After the staff finished cleaning, Jiang Hong was finally able to go on stage.

As he entered the field through the player tunnel carrying his bag, he found Del Potro already waiting for him on the pitch.

The other person stared intently at Jiang Hong, looking eager to try.

Clearly, he was still somewhat resentful about being eliminated in the first round by Jiang Hong last time.

In addition, his previous encounter with Del Potro was quite eventful, which left him with a persistent feeling that he was just a little short.

If I'm a little more cautious, improve my skills a bit, or if Jiang Hong isn't in top form, I'll have a chance to win.

After improving his strength, Jiang Hong was also eager to test it out.

Let's see if I can have a forehand attacking match with Del Potro.

(End of this chapter)