In the fourth round of the Wimbledon women's singles, Sharapova lost to Williams and was eliminated, this year Sharapova has been plagued by injuries and has affected her state of the game. This result is also acceptable for her.
In the men's singles event, in the second half of Wimbledon 2/4, the 12th seed French player Richard Gasquet defeated his compatriot Tsonga in the fourth round and successfully advanced to Wimbledon. In the quarterfinals, he is also the opponent of Zhang Guan's next game.
"Gasquet is a Frenchman. He is the same age as you. He is 1.85 meters tall. He is also a very promising athlete. He is now the number one figure in the French men's singles." Coach Zhang said.
"I remember the "Four Little Kings' ' in the tennis world. When I met the black guy Memphis before the French Open, you mentioned Gasquet, he and Memphis, Djokovic and Murray also became the'four little kings' in tennis." Zhang Guan said.
"At that time, Gasquet was hailed as the most promising one of the four little kings, and Gasquet also had a nickname, "Little Federer." Coach Zhang explained.
"Why? His technical characteristics are very similar to Federer's?" Zhang Guan asked.
"Yes, many of Gasquet's styles of play are imitating Federer. Gasquet is right-handed and has a one-handed backhand. His backhand cutting level is very strong, really like Federer's backhand in the Wimbledon, in addition to the interception in front of the net, backhand cutting is also a great weapon, so Wimbledon is also an advantage for Gasquet." Coach Zhang thought about it and then said, "But you don't have to worry, Gasquet is not as strong as Federer in using his forehand. Compared with his backhand, his forehand can be said to be a little weak, which is also a big reason why he failed to go further. So during the game, you can go ahead and attack Gasquet's forehand."
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The game between Zhang Guan and Gasquet was scheduled on July 5th, and the venue was at the "Grave of Champions" at Wimbledon. However, the gods didn't make the day beautiful, and it rained again in the middle of the game. Zhang Guan and Gasquet hadn't started the competition. They were forced to postpone it till tomorrow, and the game at the central stadium of Federer was also delayed.
On July 6, the weather finally cleared slightly, and the game between Zhang Guan and Gasquet was able to run smoothly.
In the various media reports before the game, all of them were talking about Zhang Guan's strength on the grass. After Wimbledon, Zhang Guan did show his dominance at Wimbledon. Therefore, when Gasquet faced Zhang Guan, he was still very guilty.
According to Gasquet's 12th ranking in the world, being able to enter the quarterfinals of Wimbledon is a relatively satisfactory answer, but Gasquet is not satisfied with this. At that time, in the "Four Little Kings" of the tennis world, Germany Jokovic had entered the top five in the world, and Murray had also entered the top ten in the world. He was hailed as the most talented player this year, but he is not as good as Djokovic and Murray, so he wants to show results during Wimbledon. Going a step further, strive to enter the top ten in the world.
So in this match, Gasquet played very hard, he hoped to get a victory.
Zhang Guan took the lead in the first game. In the first two games, both sides have been testing each other, and no one has tried to break. In the fourth game afterward, Zhang Guan took the lead in Federer's serve in Gasquet's service with a 40-30 breakpoint. During the next match between the two, Gasquet returned to the ball once and lost his own serve. Zhang Guan led 3-1 in the first four games.
In the fifth game, Gasquet used his excellent running to bite the score, and the two sides once had a 40-40 tie. However, Zhang Guan did not want to give his opponents room to play early, winning two consecutive serves and winning at the net. In this round, he had a 4-1 lead. In the sixth game, Zhang Guan continued to use a very extreme return ball, and the landing points were near the sideline. Although there were out-of-bounds balls, there were also in-bound balls. Zhang Guan also had a successful challenge to Hawk-Eye, but Gasquet kept relying on his sharp attack to get three rounds to complete the security, the score came to 4-2. In the next two games, the two sides once again kept their service, but the score of 5-3 has already made Zhang Guan at match point. In the ninth game, Gasquet suddenly changed his forehand backhand slash, hit towards Zhang Guan's backhand position, Zhang Guan was caught off guard and conceded two consecutive points, but then Zhang Guan resolved Gasquet with an ACE ball. For the special offensive, he used the service to win three consecutive points on the net and completed the guarantee with no surprises. Zhang Guan also won the first set with a score of 6-3.
In the first set, Zhang Guan won with no suspense, Gasquet did not get a breakpoint, of course, it is impossible to complete the break.
At the beginning of the second set, Zhang Guan scored a breakpoint in the first game, and the break was successful. After that, Zhang Guan successfully defended and the score was 2-0. This score helped Zhang Guan start well in the second set. In the next few games, Zhang Guan's first-run scoring rate was an astonishing 100%, and Gasquet, who was a little stunned, appeared for a consecutive time. After making five turnovers, Zhang Guan led 4-1, and then it was Zhang Guan's serve, Zhang Guan scored two ACE balls to easily get the game to 40-15, and then Gasquet challenge to Hawkeye failed, Zhang Guan led 5-1, and once again got the advantage.
In the subsequent seventh game, the two sides held a consecutive match. After two equals, Gasquet still struggled to keep his services through an ACE ball. The score came to 5-2, but then Zhang Guan's serve, Gasquet was unable to resist, and Zhang Guan also scored 6-2 to go to the next round.
Gasquet requested a medical timeout before the third set. After the three-minute medical timeout, Gasquet's state began to improve. Both defense and offense were of high quality. He used his tricky landing point to win his first serve in this set, leading 1-0. But Zhang Guan's condition is also very good. He continuously served to attack the outside corner, and then scored three points and then served easily with a serve. Afterward, the two games, he was unstoppable, and the two sides tied 2-2. In the fifth game, Gasquet's feel was improved again, two ACE balls were issued, and the service game was successfully secured. Subsequently, Zhang Guan did not give Gasquet the opportunity in his serving game. The two sides again drew 3-3.
After 30-30 in the seventh game, Gasquet put a low-quality ball in front of the net and hit Zhang Guan's forehand position. Zhang Guan's wrist flicked and put the ball back, 40-30 to get a breakpoint, then Zhang Guan did not waste this opportunity, but also a successful break before the net. In the next game, Zhang Guan re-served the serve, and the score became 5-3. Zhang Guan had already got the match point. At this time, Gasquet played a little irritably, but unforced errors increased, and finally, Zhang Guan won the third set with a score of 6-3, also won the entire game, and entered the Wimbledon semifinal.
In another venue, Federer also defeated the Spanish player and the 20th seed Ferrero 3-1, successfully entering the semifinals. He and Zhang Guan will meet again in the semifinals. This result is the same as the French Open three weeks ago.
The same semifinals, the same opponent.