Chen Jianguo poured wine for Li Dai himself and said at the same time: "Coach Li, try this wine. I have treasured Maotai for 20 years."
"If this bottle of 20-year-old Maotai were sold, it would cost tens of thousands of yuan!" Li Dai was not polite, picked up the wine glass and took a sip, closed his eyes and thought about it, and then said: "20-year-old Moutai Moutai is really different. After one sip, the aroma of the wine comes out along your nose. I said, Lao Chen, where did you find this rare product?"
"Brought from China." Chen Jianguo said.
"You went abroad to play games, and you brought wine with you?" Dai Li asked curiously.
"I was thinking at the time, if Chen Zhen reached the main draw of the US Open, why not celebrate, so I brought this bottle of wine, but I didn't expect to actually use it." Chen Jianguo said Li Daiman served the wine and then said: "Coach Li, thank you very much. If it weren't for you, Chen Zhen would never have been able to enter the main draw of the US Open. Especially the training camp with Coach Wiggins that you helped him sign up for. , he has made great progress in this week’s training.”
"It's because he is willing to work hard." Li Dai said with a smile.
"I, Chen Jianguo, have a stupid mouth and don't know much about speaking. Anyway, all my gratitude to you is in this wine." Chen Jianguo clinked their glasses with Li Dai and drank them all in one gulp.
"Old Chen, the main game is next. Do you have any new goals?" Dai Li asked with a smile.
Chen Jianguo shook his head: "Actually, I am still very clear-headed. It is not easy for Chen Zhen to reach the main draw of the US Open. I know that with his current strength, it is impossible for him to pass the first round. That is to say After the next game, it’s time for us to go home.”
"Actually, there is no chance at all. If Chen Zhen is lucky enough and meets a wild card player in the first round, he might be able to advance to the second round," Li Dai said.
"I hope so!" Chen Jianguo did not show the slightest optimism.
Tennis competition players are grouped according to ranking. For example, the four major tennis open tournaments have a total of 32 seeded players, which is the top 32 in the world. When grouping, these 32 seeded players will be divided into Among different groups, in the Grand Slam groupings, it is impossible for the seeded players to meet in the first two rounds. It is not until the third round that the seeded players may meet.
At the same time, the top players will be separated as much as possible. For example, the top seed and the second seed will be in different half areas. Unless they reach the finals, it is impossible to compete. The top seed and the fourth seed, as well as the second seed and the third seed, will not meet until the semifinals.
Since there are 32 seeded players, of course there will be 96 unseeded players, including many cannon fodder players who will be eliminated in the first round. For example, players who advance through the qualifying rounds have much lower world rankings and are naturally cannon fodder players. The weaker the cannon fodder player, the more likely it is that he will encounter a higher-ranked seed player in the first round.
When organizing athletes into groups, the tournament will also take special care of the top seeded players. For example, the top 16 seeded players will basically face cannon fodder players in the first round. This is equivalent to being sent to the second round. . For example, the top seeded players in a tournament will often encounter players who advance through the qualifying rounds in the first round. Because the players who advance through the qualifying rounds are relatively weak, the seeded players can be recommended to advance.
For the organizers, if a powerful seeded player is eliminated in the first round, it will also affect the enjoyment of the game.
The players who advance through the qualifying round are basically ranked outside the 110th place in the world. If they meet the top 10 players in the world, they will be completely beaten without even the possibility of fighting back. Therefore, for players who advance through the qualifying rounds, it is completely impossible for them to advance to the second round. Their role in the Grand Slam main draw is to become qualified cannon fodder, helping the seeded players warm up and adapt to the rhythm of the game. , and then lose the game, and the seeded player will advance.
Chen Jianguo also knows that although Chen Zhen has advanced to the main draw of a Grand Slam, he still has not been able to escape the fate of cannon fodder. In the first round, he will most likely face top seeded players, so Chen Jianguo does not have the luxury of expecting Chen Zhen He could advance to the second round, but with Chen Zhen's strength, he really couldn't beat the seeded players.
However, there is also a situation where cannon fodder players may advance, and that is when they face wild card players in the first round.
As mentioned before, there are eight wild card spots in the Grand Slam, mainly for big-name players who are returning from injury, sponsored players and local players. The organizers naturally hope that local players can last longer, which will help increase the ratings and attention of the game. Therefore, when grouping, the organizers will deliberately allow local wild card players to meet players who have advanced through the qualifying rounds.
Because the players who advance through the qualifying round are relatively weak, local wild card players have a chance to defeat them and advance. On the contrary, the local wild card players are also weaker. Players who advance in the qualifying round will have a chance to win when they meet them. After all, they are much better than the seeded players.
To put it simply, if in the first round a wild card player meets a player who has advanced through the qualifying round, I think you are weak and you think I am weak. Both sides think they have a chance to win, but in fact they are a pair of rookies pecking each other.
It is not uncommon in tennis for the organizer to recommend local players to advance. It is also very common for local players to be given a weaker opponent. Sometimes, two local wild card players are even placed in the same group. . For example, there was a session of the China Open. In the men's singles event, Chinese players received three wild cards. However, the strength of the Chinese players was so poor that no one could beat them on the court, so the organizers simply removed them. Two of the Chinese players arrange the first encounter so that at least one Chinese player can be guaranteed to advance to the second round.
For Chen Zhen, if he meets a wild card player in the first round, he can at least give it a try and have a chance to advance to the second round. Of course, even if you advance to the second round, you may still encounter seeded players and your journey to the US Open will inevitably end.
As a professional player, even if you are not a very good professional player, it would be good if you can survive one more round.
Moreover, the prize money of Grand Slam will also increase a lot every time you advance.
…
Chen Jianguo and Dai Li were drinking wine when Chen Jianguo's cell phone suddenly rang with a text message appearing on it.
"It's a notice from the tournament. The first round groupings of the US Open have appeared. You can check it on the official website." Chen Jianguo said.
Dai Li also took out his mobile phone and logged into the official website of the US Open. He also wanted to know who Chen Zhen's opponent would be for the first time.
Dai Li found the matchup chart on the US Open's official website, and he immediately saw Chen Zhen's name.
The reason for this is that Chen Zhen's name is very high up. He is ranked second on the matchup chart, and being ranked first on the matchup chart is naturally the number one seed in the tournament, which is also the number one in the world. players.
This also means that Chen Zhen's first opponent is the world number one!
"How's it going? Who will Chen Zhen play in the first round?" Chen Jianguo asked with anticipation. He still hoped that Chen Zhen's luck would be better and he would face a wild card student in the first round.
But Dai Li handed the phone to Chen Jianguo, and then said: "There is no chance of advancing. In the first round, we met Basel, the king of tennis! The strongest tennis player in the world and the strongest tennis player in history. …”