▲On May 2, 2023, in the fourth round of the men's singles of the 2023 Madrid Open, China's Zhang Zhizhen defeated America's Fritz 2-1 to advance to the quarterfinals
If he can beat Russia's Karatsev, Zhang Zhizhen will be in the top 50, becoming the highest-ranked Chinese mainland male player since the ATP points system was set up in 1973.
This article was first published in Southern People Weekly
Text / Southern People Weekly reporter Xu Mei
Photo / Xinhua News Agency
The first working day after the May Day holiday, are you okay?
If you still can't lift your spirits, you may wish to pay attention to the Madrid Masters quarterfinals that began at 7 p.m. Beijing time on May 4 - Chinese male tennis player Zhang Zhizhen, who has been "working overtime" throughout the May Day holiday, will face the world's 121st Russian player Aslan Karatsev.
▲On April 29, 2023, in the second round of the men's singles of the 2023 Madrid Open, China's Zhang Zhizhen defeated Canada's Shapovalov 2-1 to advance to the round of 32
In October 2022, Zhang Zhizhen's winning streak at the Naples Open in Italy sent him to the ATP standings TOP100, becoming the first Chinese mainland male player to achieve this goal. In the first three months of the 2023 season, Zhang Zhizhen was hard to win, and he was under a lot of pressure because of it. After winning four straight games at Madrid's Magic Box stadium, he has risen from 99th to 66th, and if he can beat the Russians tonight, he will be in the top 50, becoming the highest-ranked Chinese mainland male player since the ATP points system was set up in 1973.
▲Russian player Aslan Karatsev
In the fourth round, after he upset his defeat over American brother Fritz to advance to the quarterfinals, the ATP official website praised it as an "epic victory" for the Chinese men's tennis. The 26-year-old Zhang Zhizhen not only defeated the top 10 professional masters for the first time in his career, but also became the first Chinese men's tennis player to reach the quarterfinals of the Masters.
In this matchup, Zhang Zhizhen saved 3 match points and won two tie-breaks, while in the previous four games, Zhang Zhizhen won 7 7 and won 6 times, and was named "tiebreak killer, tiebreak tiger" by the English commentator on the scene!"
"Why are you so calm?" "Why have you won so many snatch-seven battles?"
Zhang Zhizhen's answer will always cool down the boiling post-match press conference quickly, "I also remember those robbery I lost!" "After losing so many games, you actually become calmer."
▲On May 2, 2023, Zhang Zhizhen celebrated his score in the game
Zhang Zhizhen's most talked about loss was in the first round of the US Open in August 2022, when he broke through from the qualifying round and had high hopes for him to play two sets in the first round of the main draw, but he missed seven match points in the third set, and when he was 5-1 in the seventh set, he was reversed by his opponent in three consecutive sets, and unfortunately went out.
Just as he remains calm in the midst of praise now, he also has a detachment when he is scolded for his poor psychological quality. In an interview with Olympic champion yachtsman Xu Lijia's self-media "Sports Good News", he said that he thought he played at his level in that competition, "It is rare to have an important game, although I lost, I still felt happy." ”
This remark sounds like a weak self-defense, but Xu Lijia, who is also an athlete, can fully understand, "Looking back on my own years of preparation, it is true that sometimes even if I reach the top podium, my heart is not overjoyed. (Because this is) God forbid, luck wins, in fact, it is a mess! Conversely, sometimes even if I lose a race, if I have done my best and used all my potential to reach the end, then I can accept any outcome. ”
After all, not everyone can have as insight into the spiritual world of athletes as Xu Lijia, for many journalists, an interview subject like Zhang Zhizhen is a challenge, his appearance is very plain, and the reporter asked him to look forward to it before the quarter-of-the-showdown. "Let me tell you a story!" The reporter looked at him expectantly, expecting to hear a story full of suspense and fun, but he wiped the sweat from his face, "I played a practice match with him (Karatsev) two days ago, and I lost to him 0-6... What can I do but do my best? ”
Belch......
In order to rekindle the suspense of the quarterfinals, reporters worked hard to turn over the previous record of the two head-to-head, and it is clear that in 2022, the two met in an ATP500 indoor hard court match in Kazakhstan, and Zhang Zhizhen reversed to win after losing a set first.
But a pragmatic and low-key approach may be the best attitude in the highlights, Karatsev had fallen to just outside the 100 world rankings before the Madrid Masters, but 15 months ago he was still in the top 20 in the world, and this time in Madrid he also rushed forward, with the likes of Van der Chaanschup, De Minal and Medvedev.
▲On May 1, 2023, in the third round of the men's singles at the 2023 Madrid Open, China's Zhang Zhizhen defeated Britain's Norrie 2-1 and advanced to the round of 16. Zhang Zhizhen tossed the bracer to the fans after the game
"Really, you never know what awaits you at the next corner of fate. But first, you have to go through that long tunnel to finally see the light in the distance. Zhang Bendou, a well-known tennis media personality, is delighted by Zhang Zhizhen's four victories at the Madrid Masters, and he is even more emotional that Zhang Zhizhen can grit his teeth and survive the bleak first four months of this season, "He must have trained hard, instead of blindly allowing himself to struggle both on the court and in his heart." ”
Interview report professional tennis for more than 20 years, Zhang Bendou has been looking forward to a TOP100 in China's men's tennis, "When I see Zhang Zhizhen being ridiculed and even abused on the Internet, I think: We have been looking forward to the top 100 players for so long, and finally here, and this is how we treat them? ”
If Zhang Zhizhen wins tonight's (May 4), he will once again rewrite the history of the Chinese men's tennis, and at the same time will regain a large number of points and push the door to the TOP50, not only to complete the goal set for himself in the world top 50 in the new season, but also to surpass Wu Yixiang, who is currently ranked 57th in the world.
▲On May 2, 2023, Zhang Zhizhen returned the ball in the game
Zhang Bendou also had a different interpretation of this key battle that many self-media regarded as Zhang Zhizhen's recapture of the first brother of the Chinese men's tennis from Wu Yixiang, saying, "Better days are still to come!" Everyone congratulated Zhang Zhizhen on the breakthrough of the Masters, and should also think about whether they can be given some patience and encouragement when they lose. Including Wu Yixiang, who is not good at clay, came to his worst time of the season, looking at the comment section of social media about his posts, he has also begun to bear some public pressure. There is also Shang Chengcheng, due to injuries and other reasons, he has insufficient participation in 2023 and can only play with injuries, which affects the improvement of his record and ranking, and there will be voices questioning his development ceiling. Patience is a virtue. For the players, but also for the fans and the media. ”
"I'm almost the last two players to get into the main draw by ranking. I was still in the U.S. last week for the Challenger, and I didn't expect to be able to qualify for the Madrid Masters without having to play qualifying, but I didn't expect so many players to withdraw," Zhang said in a pre-tournament interview. ”
Tonight, let's put aside our distractions, bless Zhang Zhizhen, and look forward to his greater surprises.