The first time she joined hands with American supernova Gauff, she reached the Stuttgart doubles final, and Zhang Shuai slowly recovered from the trough, and her difficult choices in life also began!
Before Zhang Shuai and Gao Fu formed a new "Gao Fu Shuai" combination to start, her doubles results in the 2022 season were quite dismal, not to mention reaching the final, and even playing a deeper round became a luxury. Coupled with the fact that she is 33 years old this year, this age for women's players, can almost be said to be at the end of her career, many people are worried about whether Zhang Shuai will have the confidence to continue to compete in the doubles arena if she continues to slump like this.
Fortunately, Heaven still took great care of Zhang Shuai, and finally sent Gao Fu to her side when she was struggling in the quagmire. The first time the two men formed the "Rich and Handsome" combination, they sparked a spark, and in the doubles arena in Stuttgart, they passed the hurdles to reach the final. Although he failed to lift the first doubles title of the new season as he wished, he still gave Zhang Shuai the motivation and confidence to continue to move forward.
If singles tests the technical strength and strategy and tactics of the player, then for the doubles player, it is crucial to meet a good partner.
Zhang Shuai is currently able to firmly occupy the top three positions of the Chinese women's tennis, which has a lot to do with her dazzling doubles results.
This has to mention the australian star Stosur, it is precisely because she pulled a Zhang Shuai at a critical moment, encouraging her to continue to play, do not give up, Zhang Shuai finally ushered in a breakthrough in singles. At the same time, she and Zhang Shuai formed a doubles pair, winning the Australian Open and US Open Grand Slam doubles titles, making Zhang Shuai a Chinese golden flower with a Grand Slam champion body.
However, after the highlight of the two people, when they continued to compete in the doubles field, the results also fell back quickly. In the 2022 season, the two crown games of Indian Wells and Miami, which were played by two people, did not have a single victory.
Of course, there are two people who do not play well, and if you analyze them carefully, there should be problems with the age and status of your partner.
The 38-year-old Stosur this year, whether it is technical strength or physical fitness, is in a serious decline, and there are too high expectations and requirements for her performance in the doubles field, which is obviously unrealistic.
Therefore, when Zhang Shuai met Gao Fu in the trough, and the two people worked together to quickly succeed, netizens who liked Zhang Shuai screamed with excitement, hoping that she could take Stuttgart as an opportunity to pair with Gao Fu for a long time to seek longer-term development.
Netizens shouted like this, of course, not intentionally to split the relationship between Stosur and Zhang Shuai, but from the key aspects of the doubles player's partnership. Because, any player who wants to play a world in the doubles arena, a good partner is too crucial, otherwise it may be completely reduced.
When Singis and Mirza were paired, the two were almost invincible in the doubles. Whether it's a Grand Slam doubles champion or a tour champion, both men have won the hand. However, after Singis retired, Mirza's doubles performance also fell back rapidly when he did not meet a good partner like Singis, and now it is almost completely ignored.
The same problem also happened to Peng Shuai.
When Peng Shuai and Xie Shuwei were paired, the two also shined in the doubles arena of major competitions many times and won the championship many times. The two people cooperated tacitly, allowing them to successively win the Wimbledon and French Open doubles Grand Slam champions, and also bloomed on the stage of the year-end finals, winning the doubles championship in the finals and even reaching the top of the doubles world number one.
After the two people had a conflict and broke up, Peng Shuai no longer found a good partner, and the doubles results did not improve, and now they have disappeared without a trace.
Now that Zhang Shuai meets Gao Fu, it can be said that everything is the best arrangement in heaven.
However, the question that tests Zhang Shuai is, can she really give up Stosur and choose Gauff?
Zhang Shuai has always been one of the few women's players who cherishes righteousness, and it can be seen that she and coach Liu Shuo have been working together so far, and there has never been an idea of changing coaches.
This also means that for Stosur who has helped her at the low point of her life, Zhang Shuai may really have a hard time doing it for the sake of immediate interests, regardless of past feelings, choosing to give up Stosur and embrace Gauff.
If this is the case, for zhang Shuai, who is getting older, it is undoubtedly very difficult for her to regain her former glory in the doubles field in the future. Then the highlight of her career may also be fixed on the current two Grand Slam doubles championships.
However, from the perspective that Zhang Shuai has been partnering with different types of players, it shows that she is also actively looking for the best partner, or hopes to continue to make a difference in the doubles field.
On the one hand, the old love, on the other hand, the future destiny, now for Zhang Shuai, let her make a choice, it is really difficult for her.
Which one Zhang Shuai will choose between the new Joy Goof and the old Estother, everything depends on what Zhang Shuai himself ultimately wants! (Source: House of Tennis Author: Starry Sky of The Moon River)