Chapter 555: Evenly Matched
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Basel thought of the day’s match as more of a practice exercise.
Zhen Chen was so weak that Basel wasn’t interested enough to take the compet.i.tion seriously. In Basel’s mind, Zhen Chen’s serve was not strong enough, and the whirl of his return was also average. Even his ball placement left much to be desired. His sparring partners were better than this guy.
As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. Basel’s friends were all top 20 players. His sparring partners were all good enough to be seeded in the Open tournaments. They really were much better than Zhen Chen.
However, Basel pouted, as he was dissatisfied with the score. In the first set of the match, the two sides actually tied 6-6. They were now both competing for the advantage.
“It seems I’ve relaxed too much today. My concentration must not be as good as when I usually practice. I’m even stuck in a tie.” Basel shook his head with a bitter smile.
Basel knew he shouldn’t be tied with such a weak player. However, he was not worried. He was relaxed and not entirely focused on the game. Basel believed that as long as he concentrated, he could easily win the game.
Zhen Chen did not expect to tie Basel.
Zhen Chen did not really have a strategy for this match. He gave it his all for every ball. He knew that, his opponent being Basel, he would not be able to win no matter how hard he tried. It was better just to do his best and win a point. Unexpectedly, he was now tied in the first set.
If one ignored the players and only looked at the scores, it looked like a good battle. However, considering the talent gap between the two sides, the tie was probably because Basel had not yet gotten his head in the game.
*pang* The ball flew towards the sideline and Basel did not attempt to return the ball.
“ACE!” The umpire did not hesitate. He saw very clearly that this was an ace.
After hearing this, Basel was annoyed. He should have received this serve, but he felt that the ball would go out of bounds, so he ignored it. This was representative Basel’s mindset today. He was slacking
Basel looked at the score. Chen had the advantage, Basel had, unexpectedly, fallen behind by a point. More importantly, Zhen Chen got the game point, and it was going into the set point with the advantage!
Fortunately, the next serve was Basel’s. He had control.
If I lose the next point, I will lose this set, Basel thought. In actuality, he was not the least bit nervous.
Basel swung his racket and served. He put his signature topspin on it.
The serve was beautiful. The angle, power, and rotation of the ball were all excellent.
Although Zhen Chen returned the ball, the quality of the return was poor. His technique had been deformed by the serve.
Basel chose to go directly towards the net. He smashed the ball vigorously, and the ball went towards the opposite side of Zhen Chen. He scored this point easily. Zhen Chen didn’t have the strength to return the ball.
The score was now 6-6.
Then, Basel double faulted and the score became 7-6. It was Zhen Chen’s turn to serve again.
“This game is not going anywhere.” Dai Li could not help but sigh.
There was no response from Jianguo Cheng. He was already nervous, and he could not bring himself to speak.
Finally, Basel won the set with his superior skills. The overall score changed to 1-0.
“Although the first set took a while, Basel won without too much effort. However, I did not expect that the player who got in through the qualifiers could tie with Basel,” the commentator said.
Another commentator immediately added on. “Yeah, I did not expect that. I guess maybe the opponent is so weak that Basel relaxed too much. He did not take it seriously.”
Basel was indeed as relaxed as the two commentators said. He was currently very confident.
“Looking at the score alone, it seems that match was very difficult.” Basel took a sip of water and leaned back in his chair. He shot a smile towards the opposite stand every once in a while. He did not feel the slightest ounce of pressure right now.
The second set of the match started very quickly. Basel still looked relaxed. He performed as if he did not care, and the game tied again.
Two ties in two consecutive games. If someone was unaware of the matchup, they would think that the two players were of comparable strength.
This time, it was Zhen Chen who won the match. Zhen Chen seemed to be possessed by Basel, serving two aces. Basel himself did not try his hardest, so he lost this match.
The total score became 1-1.
Although it had become it was tied, Basel appeared to still be indifferent. He did not think he would lose to this unknown athlete. Now, Basel was like a gambler with a million chips. Even if he lost a hundred and eighty chips, it was only a drop in the bucket. It wouldn’t hurt at all.
Basel thought that, as long as he got just a little serious, he could easily beat Zhen Chen.
In the third set, Basel got serious. He did win this set, but it had once again been tied.
It was very rare to reach the ties in three consecutive games in the Grand Slam.
A match that was expected to be completed within half an hour had now been going on for an hour and a half. The match had only finished with the third set.
In the fourth game, the score became 5-5.
How can it be tied again? Basel looked at the score and became slightly anxious.
Tying three consecutive sets with a player that entered through the qualifiers, made Basel slightly off-balance.
However, became Basel even more dispirited. He easily scored on his serve but lost the two subsequent points. The two sides were tied for the fourth time.
I have played tennis for many years, and this is the first time where I’ve tied in four consecutive sets. The opponent isn’t even supposed to be good. Basel looked at Zhen Chen on the other side of the rest area. He recalled the game in detail.
In the first two sets, I underestimated my opponent too much. Later, this guy gradually adapted to my style of play. I myself have made several mistakes and I have not been trying very hard. If I knew this was going to happen, I would’ve ended this match as soon as it started, Basel thought
…
“7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 6-7…” Dai Li recited the scores of the four sets. This was the power of the “Evenly Matched” t.i.tle.
In a Grand Slam tournament, Zhen Chen was undoubtedly one of the worst and Basel was deservedly the best. The two players were at completely different ends of the spectrum. There was not supposed to be any suspense. However, with the “Evenly Matched” t.i.tle in effect, the result was even.
Oh my G.o.d, the effect of this t.i.tle is too abnormal. It can make a match between a weak player and the world’s tennis king difficult to resolve. It completely got rid of the gap in strength.
Dai Li could not help but compare this “Evenly Matched” to the rewards that he had received before.
In the beginning, I got the Explosive Aura. The effect was not too noticeable and, as the level of the athletes increased, it became less and less obvious. Later, the Weight Loss Exercises, Fat Loss Exercises, Relaxation Ma.s.sage, and the Rehabilitation Ma.s.sage could only be regarded as auxiliary effects. Although it helped athletes lose weight and recover, in the end, it could not directly affect the compet.i.tions.
The Morale-boosting Book and Warm Up Square Dance both directly affected the compet.i.tion, but they could not directly improve the athlete’s strength. They only allowed them to get into a relatively compet.i.tive mindset. As for Flexible Yoga and Physical Runaway, they were able to enhance an athlete’s ability. They enhanced a certain aspect of the athlete, but this enhancement was not immediate and required long-term uninterrupted training.
The Athlete Alb.u.m and Copy Card could only be regarded as items that enhanced my personal ability. They had no effect during training or during the compet.i.tions. The Athlete’s Patch and Age-reducing Card are items that directly affect the athletes, and they can continue to be used for a long time. The effect of the items last for a long time, but the number of uses is limited.
The coaching Team Pyramid and the coaching Scepter of Authority, although not directly affecting the athletes, enhance my personal leaders.h.i.+p. My first t.i.tle, ‘Iron Rope Boat,’ enhances the cooperation between athletes. I can be used to achieve amazing results in certain compet.i.tions, the track and field relay race for example, but this t.i.tle does not directly affect how fast the athletes run.
When compared, the State Scale can directly affect the state of the athletes, thus directly changing the outcome of the game. The Prophecy Request Box also changes the outcome of a match. As for today’s ‘Evenly Matched,’ it is to ignore the gap in strength between athletes. It can make it so that a tennis king and a weak player can be locked in a close battle.
These three items were obtained recently. The rewards I obtained at the beginning only a.s.sist athletes in training. The ones I obtained a while can directly affect the athletes, and the ones I obtain now can directly affect a compet.i.tion. It seems that as I improve, the rewards I receive get more and more powerful.
Dai Li suddenly felt scared. He had the ability to change the outcome of a compet.i.tion, so it wasn’t fair at all!
“A world-cla.s.s coach should have the ability to change the outcome of a compet.i.tion. That’s is the mark of a great coach. If an athlete were bad and was still bad after coaching, then what is the use of the coach?” The system said this in Dai Li’s head.
“But other coaches don’t have the system’s support. They rely on their own real skills. This is unfair,” Dai Li immediately responded.
“Life is not fair. Everyone starts at a different point in life from birth, so unfairness already exists. This is fate. People cannot choose it. Starting life with an advantage is not a sin. It can be said that one is lucky. It is like how you met me, you were luckier than others, so you have an advantage.”
The system paused for a while and then said, “A knife can do a lot of things. It can be used to cut vegetables and it can be used to chop firewood. It can also be used to hurt people. It all depends on the person using the knife. I am the knife and you are my wielder. How I am used depends on you in the end. It depends on what you want to achieve. Maybe sometimes, what you want is not a simple victory.”
Not a simple victory? Dai Li blinked and saw Zhen Chen on the court.
Now, Zhen Chen had a strong, fighting spirit in his eyes. He was confident.
At this moment, Dai Li had a realization.
No matter what the outcome of this game, Zhen Chen has gained the heart of a confident man! Is this not the result I hoped to see?
Thinking this, Dai Li laughed.
Dai Li wanted to help Zhen Chen, but Zhen Chen’s was not the best and he was not very strong. He had many places he needed to improve on. Zhen Chen, a weak player, could not have gone too far in the Grand Slam. Maybe, for this type of athlete, gaining confidence was a better reward than victory.
…
In the fifth set, the two sides were still neck in neck. Zhen Chen had several lucky points at crucial times, while Basel made many mistakes at critical times.
Zhen Chen also had excellent luck. He challenged two of the umpire’s penalty to the Hawk-Eye system, always being right. Basel’s two challenges to the Hawk-Eye failed.
In a blink of an eye, the fifth set reached a score of 6-6 again.
The audience was amazed. All five sets had been played in the match. The first four sets all reached ties, and the fifth set also managed to reach a 6-6. A match that was only expected to last half an hour had gone on for more than two and a half hours.
More importantly, according to the rules, the winner would have to be decided by an advanced set.
The men’s singles of the four major tennis tournaments followed a system of having five-games and three-wins. In the first four games played, if they all get to 6-6, the winner was determined through a tie-breaker. If the fifth game reached a score of 6-6, the winner was determined by an advantage set.
Most tennis compet.i.tions were based on the short set system. In each set, the person who got to 6 points first is the winner. If there was a 5 to 5 draw, the person who gets 7 points first won.
In the four major tennis tournaments, when both sides reached the set that decides the final winner, they would have to play an advantage set. That is to say, in this set, if both sides scored 5 points, a player must beat the opponent by two points. Only then would the set be won. Therefore, in an advantage set, scores of 10-8 or 12-10 were not uncommon.
The longest final in history was an advantage set was at Wimbledon. The score was 70-68. That is to say, in the final match, the two players played a total of 138 points. The match was played for three full days. The length of the entire match was 11 hours and 5 minutes. Both players were obviously evenly matched.
In fact, any two players who reached the finals with an advantage set were evenly matched. The two conditions of victory of an advantage set were, firstly, the previous two sets had to have scores of 2-2. Secondly, the final set had to reach a score of 6-6. It was impossible for any two players who were not evenly matched to achieve these two conditions.
It was clear that Chen and Basel were not evenly matched. Before the game, no one would think that King Basel, when faced with an athlete who qualified through the qualifiers, would have to play an advantage set to win!