Tennis: He's so obedient!

Chapter 211 Easily Advances to the Semifinals, Three Losses in a Row, A Loyal Servant!
The next day, early in the morning.

Publications from various media outlets were already on display, and news about Jiang Hong was everywhere.

Xinhua News Agency's headline: "Youth's Responsibility in the New Era: A Warning to Future Generations After Victory"

"After Jiang Hong achieved a historic victory, he was not blinded by joy; on the contrary, he remained very rational..."

A special edition of Sports Weekly was published again, titled "Behind the Victory".

However, this time it wasn't just Jiang Hong; Sports Weekly also contacted and interviewed some other athletes about the harsh realities of professional sports.

In addition to domestic newspapers, newspapers in Europe and America also reported on this.

The French newspaper L'Équipe's eye-catching headline reads: "Flash in the pan? Is it arrogance or strength? Jiang Hong: Let's see if we can win back-to-back Masters titles."

"...Jiang Hong, who has made it into the quarterfinals, has his sights set on the championship, and has vowed to win back-to-back titles at the Madrid Masters and the Paris Masters..."

Seeing this news headline, many French fans did indeed feel that Jiang Hong was too arrogant.

Although Federer and Djokovic are out, there are still many other top players.

Currently, only Safin has won back-to-back Masters titles.

At that time, Safin was a tennis legend who held a Grand Slam title and had reached the world number one ranking.

Although Jiang Hong has already won a Masters title, he is still far behind his opponent.

Moreover, Nadal has quite a few fans in France, after all, his three French Open titles are no joke.

Jiang Hong's words are blatantly disregarding Nadal!

Aren't Chinese players supposed to be very humble?
How could Jiang Hong be so arrogant and conceited?

The New York Times headline was more normal, without much malice.

"I simply hit the ball to a position where my opponent can't reach it"—Jiang Hong, a rising master in tennis.

However, the German newspaper Bild took a completely different approach, with its headline stating directly...

"Experts slam Jiang Hong's playing style as flashy but impractical; Chinese talent retorts sarcastically: Your ideas are also quite far-fetched."

If you don't understand the cause and effect, it will only make Jiang Hong seem like he's angry and embarrassed.

The New York Post, ever eager to stir up trouble, immediately added fuel to the fire.

"Bad Kid Makes His Debut? Rising Star Jiang Hong's 'Sarcastic' Remarks at Press Conference, Criticizing Commentators for Being 'Blind'"

……

Inside the training field.

"Jiang, I didn't expect you to be on so many headlines. You're really popular!" Djokovic teased, winking as he held up a newspaper.

Jiang Hong rolled her eyes and said irritably, "Then how about I give this person my temper to you?"

"Then forget it, I'm not worthy of it!" Djokovic immediately waved his hand, refusing Jiang Hong's 'kind offer'.

However, she then comforted Jiang Hong, saying, "Jiang, don't be too sad. I was ridiculed a lot when I said my goal was to be number one in the world!"

Hearing Djokovic's words of comfort, Jiang Hong shrugged.

"Don't worry, I'm not that upset about these things."

After all, as a Chinese player, the better his performance, the more aggressive these media outlets will likely be.

Although it is presented in a very civilized manner, it is arrogant at its core.

Jiang Hong suddenly looked up and laughed, "Novak, if you want to help me, you should focus on training with me so I can win this back-to-back championship!"

Upon hearing this, Djokovic couldn't help but inwardly complain.

If Jiang Hong wins the back-to-back Masters tournaments, his championship honors will almost catch up with his own.

After all, he only won two Masters titles.

However, back-to-back matches are significantly more difficult.

Djokovic thought for a moment and said, "I can't cancel my lunch appointment!"

"In that case, let's get started quickly and not waste any time!" Jiang Hong was a little impatient and made the most of the time.

Although there won't be a huge improvement, at least I can ensure that my performance doesn't decline!
Djokovic was a bit annoyed after being swept aside by Murray yesterday, so he's taking this opportunity to vent.

"Okay, let's get started!"

The two sides did not start fighting directly, but instead did some warm-up exercises. As professional players, they attach great importance to their physical condition.

The warm-up ended 10 minutes later.

"Jiang, come on!"

Djokovic stood on the opposite half of the court, bent down, and shouted loudly.

"coming!"

Jiang Hong tossed the tennis ball high into the air, pushed off the ground, turned his body, prepared his racket, and struck the ball.

boom!
It wasn't the usual high-speed flat shot, but a moderately fast shot down the middle.

Djokovic kept his eyes fixed on Jiang Hong's movements and instantly started moving.

The prediction was completely correct, and I immediately began to rotate and receive the shot.

However, as he moved, he suddenly stopped for a moment.

The extended racket couldn't fully meet the attack; it only passively blocked it.

"Snapped!"

The tennis ball hit the rim with a thud and flew high out of the court.

Djokovic's expression froze.

I was just trying to vent my frustration from yesterday's loss, but I never expected to make such a basic mistake.

He immediately coughed and shouted, "The first ball, I just didn't have the feel for it!"

boom!
boom!
boom!
Jiang Hong's serves, as sharp as cannonballs, rang out continuously.

Facing Jiang Hong's serve with strong sidespin, the landing point was deep and unpredictable.

Djokovic barely managed to extend his racket to receive the serve.

However, the return shot was weak and returned to the mid-court, and Jiang Hong immediately stepped forward to hit it with a forehand.

This is already the opponent's third service return error.

You know, receiving serves is one of Djokovic's specialties.

But your performance today was so poor.

This time, he finally couldn't keep his composure any longer.

Standing opposite him, Jiang Hong suddenly remembered that in his previous life, Djokovic seemed to have been in terrible form at the Shanghai Masters Cup, which was to be held in a few days, and had lost three matches in a row.

He appears to be the player who performed the worst in the Masters Cup.

It seems that his form started to falter at the Paris Masters.

Jiang Hong stopped what he was doing and looked at Djokovic. "Novak, do you want to take a break?"

At this moment, Djokovic is a young player with his own pride.

Faced with Jiang Hong's question, he immediately shook his head and refused.

"No need, let's continue!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hong didn't ask any questions and then began to practice with all his might.

Although Djokovic is not in good form, he is still at least within the top 100 in terms of skill.

Maintaining your form and practicing tactics shouldn't be a problem.

What's more, having the greatest historical figure in the original timeline being used as a punching bag... that feeling...

That's cool!

In the following training sessions, Djokovic seemed to have a delay, like a high-Pin warrior, but he was better than at the beginning and was able to hit some good rallies.

After training, Djokovic was not as relaxed as he was before training began.

Jiang Hong wiped the sweat from his face and walked over to Djokovic.

"Novak, even though your Paris Masters tournament is over, you still have one more tournament to play this season. You can't just switch to casual mode now!"

Djokovic immediately retorted, "I just didn't get enough rest yesterday. I'll show you what I'm made of when we train together another day!"

"Okay, I'll wait!" Jiang Hong shrugged.

Djokovic left the training court and found his girlfriend.

"I'm sorry, Elena, I don't feel like I'm in the best shape right now, so I probably won't have time to show you around Paris. But after the Shanghai Masters Cup, I can spend more time with you!"

Don't underestimate the competitive spirit of the future world number one!
This time, he realized his condition was problematic earlier, so he decisively chose to make adjustments.

Upon hearing this, Elena Ristie immediately smiled and shook her head.

"It's okay, I can come watch you train!"

"Thank you, Elena!"

At this moment, Jiang Hong was unaware of the sour and pungent scent of romance emanating from him.

He was gripping the barbell and training intensely.

Because I have training recovery drugs, I don't need to worry about physical fitness or injury.

Training ended in the evening.

Back at the hotel, I checked the results of the upper bracket matches.

As expected, Nalbandian defeated Ferrer without much trouble, while Murray was defeated by his virtual sparring partner, Gasquet.

You should know that the player he knows best is Gasquet.

"I wonder if Gasquet can defeat Nalbandian?"

Jiang Hong then shook his head, because he felt that the possibility was unlikely.

"Garlic Bird, Garlic Bird, I still have two rounds left in my half of the bracket, why are you thinking so much!"

After drinking the training recovery potion, Jiang Hong promptly covered himself with the blanket and went to sleep.

The next morning, Djokovic even asked him to spar for more than forty minutes.

This is the perfect time; it allows me to maintain my form without expending too much energy and affecting the evening's match.

Djokovic's stubbornness is just a way to help him maintain his form.

However, this time the training partner even brought the coach, which clearly shows that they noticed there was a problem with the condition and were making a quick effort to prepare for training.

Jiang Hong didn't expose him; after all, it was a free sparring partner, so why not take advantage of it?

The two of them had already made plans to go to Shanghai together.

After finishing training, Jiang Hong left the field to prepare for the evening's game.

……

In the evening, at 00:00 China time, which is 18:00 Paris time.

……

"CCTV, CCTV!"

"Good evening, everyone. This is CCTV Sports Channel broadcasting live the 2007 Paris Masters Men's Singles Quarterfinals!"

"I'm commentator Zhan Jun!"

"I am Zhang Sheng! Tonight, in the romantic city of Paris, we will witness a potentially historic moment together!"

"That's right, right here in the Bercy Arena, which has witnessed countless tennis legends, an 18-year-old boy from China—Jiang Hong—will be aiming for the semifinals of the Paris Masters!"

"Alright, the players are about to enter the field!"

……

Jiang Hong and Robredo's match was scheduled for the second game.

The first match is between Nadal and Youzhny.

Nadal led 6-4 in the first set, and after figuring out his opponent's tactics in the second set, he swept the set 6-2.

Therefore, the match between Jiang Hong and Robredo started on time.

Many of Nadal's fans bought tickets for the second match after watching the first one.

After all, Jiang Hong's current influence is not enough to fill all 15609 seats.

Nadal's fans wanted to see just how good Jiang Hong, this "arrogant" guy, really was.

Suddenly, the lights on the dome of the Bessie Stadium gradually dimmed.

Only a bright beam of light remained at the entrance to the players' tunnel.

The host's drawn-out French-accented English was projected through the sound system.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters!"

"First of all, let's welcome the new champion of the Madrid Masters from China—Jiang Hong!!!"

The moment the name was called out, the scene exploded like a powder keg.

Instantly, the shouts of the Chinese fans merged together.

"Jiang Hong! Keep it up!"

Jiang Hong walked out of the dimly lit player tunnel with light steps.

He slightly raised his head, facing the direction where cheers and flashing lights intertwined, a confident smile on his lips. He raised his right hand, index and middle fingers together, and made a stylish gesture of greeting by flicking it outwards near his temple.

Seeing this, Zhang Sheng chuckled, "Looks like Jiang Hong is quite relaxed about tonight's final. Is it a newly designed entrance move?"

Zhan Jun, standing to the side, couldn't help but think to himself that Robredo's 0-2 record against Jiang Hong would definitely be easy.

Jiang Hong waved, walked to his seat, put down his golf bag, took out a water bottle from the bag, and took a sip.

"—And his opponent," the host's voice suddenly rose, making the audience's nerves pound, "is from Spain—Tommy Robredo!"

Robredo, wearing a blue and white jersey, showed little expression. He raised his racket, gestured to the four stands, and then quickly walked to his seat to check his racket.

"Robbedo, tennis fans will be familiar with him!" Zhan Jun's voice suddenly rang out.

After all, having fought Jiang Hong so many times, it's almost impossible not to recognize him.

"He is known for his tenacious will and tireless running, earning him the nickname 'Mr. Stability,' while Jiang Hong's style is also more offensive. So it seems everyone is in for a treat today, as we'll witness a clash between offense and defense!"

At the referee's call, Jiang Hong and Robredo came to the net.

After shaking hands, Jiang Hong joked, "We meet again!"

To be honest, although the two had some ups and downs during their match at the Madrid Masters, they still had a good relationship.

"Yes, we meet again!" Robredo sighed.

To be honest, he felt he would have been better off hitting Nadal than Jiang Hong.

Although his own winning percentage against Nadal is not very high.

However, when playing against Jiang Hong, I always felt like I couldn't bring out my strengths.

The two players currently have a record of two losses and zero wins.

Of course, these words couldn't be said aloud, otherwise wouldn't that be undermining one's own prestige before the competition even started?
"Tommy, you're the player I've crashed into the most!" Jiang Hong raised an eyebrow.

Robredo smirked; to be honest, he didn't want this achievement.

He looked up at Jiang Hong and said with a slightly serious expression, "Perhaps this is giving me a chance to defeat you!"

Jiang Hong shook his head and said with a smile, "Then I can't let you change our winning odds so easily!"

"Then let's see who comes out on top in the competition!"

At the same time, after explaining the rules and asking both sides to choose which side to pick, the referee tossed the coin high into the air!
After bowing his head to confirm, Robredo received the right to serve.

After warming up, both teams left the rest area and headed to their respective baselines.

Cheers and shouts of encouragement rang out from the stands.

There were quite a few people cheering for Robredo today, but they weren't his fans.

More than anything, as a Nadal fan, I hope Robredo can teach Jiang Hong, this arrogant guy, a lesson.

The enthusiastic cheers and encouragement made the atmosphere even more intense.

Jiang Hong thoroughly enjoyed this feeling.

We've reached the baseline.

Jiang Hong jumped lightly to warm up his body, hoping to start as soon as possible!

Robredo took a tennis ball out of his pocket and began to rhythmically bounce it.

"Crack...crack...crack..."

After the thud, the stadium gradually quieted down.

After looking around and confirming that both sides were ready, the referee's deep voice instantly resounded throughout the stadium.

"Play!"

Robredo took a deep breath as he looked at Jiang Hong, who was already ready to receive the serve.

As a top player, how could he not have thought about breaking free from the nightmare?

The serfs have been liberated and are now singing!
Take a deep breath, toss the ball, and stretch your body fully.

boom!
A powerful serve shot out instantly.

After the tennis ball bounced off the service court, it instantly flew straight towards Jiang Hong's backhand deep area.

Robredo's serve wasn't fast, so he tried to use depth and spin to suppress Jiang Hong.

However, Jiang Hong was thoroughly familiar with his tactics.

Therefore, his reaction was extremely fast. The moment Robredo served, Jiang Hong had already started his footwork.

With a sidestep, the center of gravity quickly lowers.

Jiang Hong did not risk an attack, but instead steadily met the attack with a backhand.

The racket face opens slightly at the moment of impact, using the opponent's force against them.

With a thud, a deep and heavy cross-court shot was returned instantly.

The tennis ball landed perfectly near Robredo's baseline.

"Difficult!"

Robredo frowned; the quality of that return was too high.

I was planning to go online, but now I have to give up.

As a Spanish player, all I can do is use my best skills.

The arm rotates rapidly, with the foot spinning upwards.

"Go back!"

He tried to pull the ball back to Jiang Hong's backhand position again.

"Is my backhand really that bad?"

Jiang Hong was a little confused. Why was everyone thinking of attacking his counter-attack?
"Nothing new!"

Having anticipated this, Jiang Hong moved with light steps and once again used his backhand to hit a flat, deep ball.

"hiss!"

Faced with Jiang Hong's continued pressure.

This time, Robredo opted not to use his usual grinding attack, but instead launched a flat shot while moving.

Unfortunately, Jiang Hong reacted quickly, stepping into the baseline and preparing his forehand shot early.

boom!
With a crisp click, a clean and decisive forehand straight shot secured the point.

0: 15.

Robredo took the ball from the caddie, "It's just the first point, it's nothing!"

Throw the ball again.

Snapped!
Snapped!
Snapped!
0: 40.

"Great job! Jiang Hong got a break point in the first game. No wonder he's known as Robredo's...nemesis!" Zhan Jun said excitedly.

He originally wanted to address him as "master," but then felt it was inappropriate and quickly changed his address.

The Nadal fans in the stands were originally hoping to see Jiang Hong, that arrogant guy, lose.

But unexpectedly, this guy actually seems to have some real strength.

However, even at this moment, they didn't forget to cheer for Robredo.

"Go Robredo!"

"Defeat this arrogant guy!"

"Keep it!"

Seeing this, the Chinese fans nearby also joined in the cheering!
"Go Jiang Shen!"

"Broken! Broken! Broken!"

Robredo is under immense pressure, not the fans.

This isn't the first time I've been used as a thug; I'm kind of used to it now.

Losing is acceptable, but being broken in the first game is still a bit embarrassing.

"calm!"

Robredo calmed himself down and stood back on the baseline.

boom!
A high-quality inside corner kick.

This shot really caught Jiang Hong off guard, so he could only barely block it back with his backhand.

The return shot was too shallow!

"The opportunity has come!"

Robredo has changed his mind; if his serve is broken, so be it!
But at least you can't have your head shaved and your hair broken!

So he immediately turned to the side and used his most threatening forehand to attack Jiang Hong's backhand opening.

It's not that Jiang Hong's backhand is bad, but rather that his forehand is stronger.

"Starting angle!"

Jiang Hong's eyes flashed, and he immediately moved two steps to the side in the direction of his backhand.

Robredo's powerful forehand cannon arrived as expected, and Jiang Hong had been waiting for it.

He hit the tennis ball precisely to the side of his body with a backhand, sending it straight down the line.

The ball speed wasn't fast, but its landing point was extremely tricky.

It hit Robredo in the exact opposite direction of his movement.

"not good!"

Robredo gritted his teeth; he had to get this point.

He immediately stopped and turned back, hastily extending his racket to barely retrieve the ball.

Watching the tennis ball wobble as it flew over the net.

"fine……"

Before I could even relax, I saw that Jiang Hong had already gone online.

He effortlessly and stylishly unleashed a forehand volley to score!

"Break! Break! Jiang Hong broke serve in the first game and took a 1-0 lead."

Jiang Hong not only demonstrated his strength in the first game, but his elegant playing style was also very eye-catching.

Many fans began to waver.

"Isn't it normal for young people to be arrogant?"

Despite Robredo's best efforts, Jiang Hong easily won the first set.

6-2.

“Snap! Snap! Snap!…”

In the blink of an eye, we've reached the eighth game of the second set, 5-2.

"Beautiful! Jiang Hong ended the round with a small ball, taking the match point!"

"Huhuhu~"

Robredo was breathing heavily.

His own grinding skills had defeated many masters, but they seemed to be ineffective against Jiang Hong.

The opponent's attack was simply too fierce.

There was silence.

Jiang Hong patted the ball, his gaze resolute.

Toss the ball, prepare the racket...

"End it!"

boom!
A flat shot to the outside corner with a speed of up to 201 kilometers per hour.

"Clatter, clatter..." Robredo started running ahead of time, determined to try anything.

"Guessed it right!"

With a powerful stride and a long forehand, the racket barely grazed the ball as the body stretched to its limit.

The tennis ball floated weakly over the net, forming a shallow ball in the mid-court.

Without the slightest hesitation, Jiang Hong instantly moved to the front of the net, quickly initiated the shot, and shifted his body weight completely forward.

When the tennis ball bounces to its highest point, strike it hard.

boom!
A powerful forehand straight smash!

The tennis ball blurred into a green afterimage, skimming the sideline.

In Robredo's despairing gaze, the tennis ball slammed heavily into the corner of the baseline, bouncing towards the distant barrier.

At this moment, there was only one thought in his mind.

"A double loss has turned into a triple loss!"

(End of this chapter)