Who would still play tennis after being reborn?

Chapter 128 Two geniuses meet in the finals

From the start of the match, Gu Cheng displayed his dominance. Amidst the thunderous cheers of the home crowd, he easily won the first set 6-2 with two breaks of serve, and the entire stadium was instantly engulfed in enthusiastic cheers.

In the second set, the Knicks gritted their teeth and showed their tenacity.

The Knicks are a team of endurance players, and have always dominated the battlefield with their iron-willed defense.

Zero mistakes + endless saves = opponent's mentality collapses.

The Knicks' tactical choices were flawless, a fact that even Gu Cheng had to admit.

Nix was very consistent; even though he lost the first set, it didn't affect his performance in the second set. His stamina and endurance were also outstanding.

Gu Cheng is very aggressive, but the Knicks are able to keep running and saving the ball, which is similar to a counter-attack in football. Even Gu Cheng, without using any skills, had a little trouble playing against them.

Looking at the Knicks running in front of him, seemingly unwilling to give up any chance to save the ball, Gu Cheng thought of a professional player, Alex.

Alex makes almost no mistakes in the game, and it's nearly impossible to throw him off balance with a return shot or a sharp serve.

But by using this defensive counter-attacking method, he was able to defeat his opponents time and time again.

Especially when the skill levels are similar, very few people can beat this natural endurance player.

Why?

Alex will wear down his opponents with his superb stamina. He has a strong presence on the court. Even if there are no easy scoring opportunities in the game, he can still score by constantly moving around.

Just like the Knicks right now, even though they are at a disadvantage, their presence is extremely strong. Every time they successfully save the ball, they can arouse cheers from countless people.

This semifinal, under the Knicks' constant running, seemed to have turned from a technical battle into a physical graveyard.

The perpetual motion machine tactic made Gu Cheng grit his teeth in frustration, even though he was no longer alive.

However, despite the Knicks' impressive performance and the cheers from countless fans for his running and ball-saving, his passive running was not enough to pose a significant threat to Gu Cheng, who has ample experience in major competitions.

The Knicks also realized that relying on physical strength to win this game seemed like a completely impossible thing to do.

Gu Cheng's level of difficulty was too high.

Even though the Knicks are known for their endurance, they were now panting heavily and out of breath. Their rapidly declining stamina forced them to reconsider their tactics against Gu Cheng.

However, whenever he tried to retaliate, Gu Cheng always managed to counter with even more sophisticated techniques.

Every ace, powerful smash, drop shot, net volley, overhead smash, and one-on-one counter-attack elicited a tidal wave of cheers from the audience, bringing the atmosphere to a fever pitch.

When the score reached a crucial 5-5 tie, both players felt unprecedented pressure.

This is not just an individual battle, but also carries the expectations of five thousand passionate fans.

In this tense and exciting moment, adrenaline surged through his body, unleashing his boundless potential.

In the eleventh game, Gu Cheng seized the opportunity when Knicks' stamina dropped and they relaxed slightly, and with a burst of energy, he completed a crucial break by frequently running and hitting the ball at a wide angle with strong topspin.

The entire audience held their breath, followed by deafening cheers.

In the end, after a fierce battle, Gu Cheng defeated the Knicks from Brazil, bringing the overall score to 2-0 and securing a crucial match point.

In the other semifinal, a 17-year-old from China also defeated the Swedish player cleanly with two scores of 6-3, giving him three match points.

The third set of the semifinals resumed after a ten-minute break.

The spectators surrounding the stadium erupted in excited cheers.

"CHENG!!"

"CHENG!!"

"Go Knicks!!" "Go Knicks!!"

"GO!! GO!!"

……

Gu Cheng was already standing on the baseline at the other end of the court, waiting for the third set to begin.

In this era, European and American athletes do tend to underestimate Asian athletes, especially the Spanish, who are known for their aggressive style.

He thought that without using his tennis skills, he could wear down Gu Cheng by relying on his stamina and defensive counter-attacking style, but he underestimated Gu Cheng's understanding of tennis.

At the start of the third set, the Knicks clearly played more aggressively. Whether it was running or hitting the ball, their overall momentum seemed to have increased, which suddenly put Gu Cheng under tremendous pressure.

However, the Knicks seemed to have a brief resurgence, only lasting less than two sets before becoming weak again. He could only stand there and watch helplessly as the balls he had been able to reach in the first two sets slipped through his fingers.

Despite having defeated one opponent after another with his positioning skills, the Spanish player Nikos lost the match 6-1 in the third set.

With a total score of 3-0, Gu Cheng successfully advanced to the final against Yu Haoyang.

In the Bellevue Cup, Chinese players will meet in the finals – two Chinese prodigies will face off in the finals!
The news spread quickly throughout the venue, and the reporters excitedly realized that this would be a match that would rewrite history. A thrilling headline had already taken shape in their minds: "Two geniuses meet in the final!"

This moment is not just about the pursuit of victory, but also a collision of youth and dreams, destined to leave a significant mark on tennis history.

As an ITF Class 1 event, the Bellevue Cup has historically featured Swedish players who have made it to the finals, and even the semifinals are often dominated by local players.

But this time, the situation was somewhat unexpected.

In the semifinals, there was only one Swedish player.

Now, the final will be a showdown between two Chinese teenagers, something that has never happened before.

……

Founded in 1988, Sports Weekly has always been the sports newspaper with the largest circulation in China, bar none.

When men's football was introduced in China, it had already set an astonishing record of over 260 million copies sold in a single issue.

Riding this wave of opportunity, Sports Weekly has become one of the giants in the domestic media industry as a sports-focused publication.

The editors of Sports Weekly know exactly what kind of matches sports enthusiasts, or Chinese people, especially young people, like to watch.

It's nothing more than the performance of domestic players on the international stage, especially in ball sports where they were originally at a disadvantage, where suddenly some players have emerged abroad, even rising at an extremely rapid pace.

This is absolutely the most popular match for passionate young people, bar none.

In the past, Sports Weekly was basically dominated by football matches.

Even if you win a championship in a sport like table tennis or badminton, it's difficult to make headlines.

But today, Sports Weekly gave Gu Cheng its front-page headline.

"A miracle! A fifteen-year-old prodigy has defeated strong opponents and will meet Yu Haoyang, also a domestic player, in the finals!"

Women's tennis still receives far less attention than men's tennis.

Even during the era when Na Jie was in charge, it still didn't have a significant impact.

But this time, the sport seems poised to truly come into the public eye and capture everyone's attention.

Gu Cheng's name thus entered the sight of many teenagers, and he became a household name as a genius prodigy.

As a result, Yu Haoyang also became a sensation.

(End of this chapter)