Chapter Seventeen: To Hell with Your Tennis Dream!
“They’re here?”
“This year’s championship is probably theirs again!”
“It feels like every year the top four are just the highest level from other schools!”
At that moment, the noise inside the court suddenly rose.
Yu Lin and Jiang Hong turned around and saw two players wearing teal jerseys.
One wore a tight headband, the other a tennis cap, both striding arrogantly as if they looked down on everyone around them.
“They’re both from the Sports Institute and were last season’s champions. The taller one with the headband is Lin Yu, and the shorter one is Wang Cheng,” Yu Lin introduced them to Jiang Hong.
“Lin Yu is good at serving…” Yu Lin paused midway, glanced at Jiang Hong beside him, then added, “But his serve technique isn’t as good as yours!”
“As for Wang Cheng, his main focus is doubles, so his net play is excellent!”
In tennis, singles and doubles have vastly different influences.
Many singles players also play doubles to improve their net skills.
Doubles players, due to role specialization, tend to have different technical emphases.
Although some doubles players are well-rounded, the truly all-around top talents rarely remain only in provincial teams.
“Does Wang Cheng play at the net or baseline?”
The distinction between net and baseline players is quite clear: baseline players excel at deep shots, while net players are skilled at handling short returns.
“At the net!”
Yu Lin quickly answered.
Jiang Hong’s eyes flickered.
This was a bit tricky.
Because Jiang Hong’s biggest shortcoming right now was net play.
[Net play: 30]
Those thirty points came passively from improvements in his forehand and backhand; he had never done specialized net training.
Still, Jiang Hong wasn’t without strategies against Wang Cheng, though they carried some risks.
He knew he had to be cautious—not to underestimate any worthy adversary.
Once all the schools’ players had signed in, the match schedule was released.
Jiang Hong’s first-round opponent was a student from the University of Technology, but according to Yu Lin, this player’s level was even below Wang Li’s, essentially a free win.
University matches were like this—skill levels varied wildly, from provincial team members to beginners who had only played for a year.
Jiang Hong noticed a student smiling directly at him; he didn’t know anyone else here.
If he guessed right, that was probably his first-round opponent.
Jiang Hong viewed the opponent as a free win, and the opponent likely saw Jiang Hong as an easy target.
After all, the opponent was one of the weaker players among several tennis clubs. Facing a newcomer was at least better than meeting the tough ones.
“Looks like I have a chance to advance to the second round!” the opponent’s smile brightened even more.
Jiang Hong watched the excitement and silently hoped the opponent would still be smiling after the match.
---
With four courts available, the first round’s sixteen matches were divided into four batches.
Jiang Hong was in the third batch, so he had to wait a while before playing and sat down to watch the matches.
Yu Lin was in the second batch, facing a player from the Normal University.
Yu Lin’s skills were decent; overall, it was a tense match but he edged out a victory with scores of 6-3 and 7-5.
No sooner had that match finished than staff came to notify Jiang Hong to prepare.
After a brief warm-up and a few serves, the match was about to begin.
A coin toss decided the serving rights.
Jiang Hong’s luck was poor—he didn’t get the serve.
Both players took their positions at the baseline, ready to start.
“Go, Captain! You’re the best!”
“Easy win, two sets of 6-0!”
“Technology University unbeatable!”
Jiang Hong hadn’t expected the opponent to have a cheer squad.
Playing tennis is one thing, but bringing girls? That was unfair!
“Come on, Jiang Hong! Crush them and bring the championship back to our school!” Li Hua responded loudly, overpowering the chorus from the girls nearby.
The referee couldn’t stand the noise and quickly called out,
“Please be quiet, the match is starting!”
When the opponent launched his serve, Jiang Hong immediately knew the set was secure.
*Bang!*
The first serve wasn’t out, but it lacked speed and angle—anyone unfamiliar might have thought it was just a warm-up.
Jiang Hong stepped forward, swung hard, and smashed the ball into the opponent’s open space.
The opponent was still rooted in place, seemingly caught off guard.
0:15.
“Nice shot!” Li Hua immediately stood and applauded.
Because each match had four sets, and the opponent was a known weakling while Jiang Hong was a newcomer, no one outside their two schools paid much attention.
The opponent just felt unlucky and continued serving in the next game.
But this time, he double-faulted.
Jiang Hong thought that even if he didn’t return the ball, the score would probably reach 40-40 on its own.
In such a low-quality match, Jiang Hong wasn’t very motivated; so when facing the serve, he just smashed the ball down in one stroke.
Soon, it was Jiang Hong’s turn to serve.
Even more terrifying—he barely had to touch the ball!
The opponent’s only thought was: the real free win is me!
Neither player ever had to rally beyond the second hit.
---
There was a vast gulf between their skills.
One wasn’t even strong in amateur circles; the other had a chance to be a dark horse in ATP Challenger tournaments.
The outcome was no surprise:
Two straight 6-0 sets—a complete sweep.
After the match, as per tradition, the players were supposed to shake hands.
But the opponent, utterly broken in spirit, threw down his racket and ran off.
“Mom, I want to go home!”
Technology University’s situation was truly disheartening: not only had their captain been swept aside, but another player in the other half of the draw was eliminated early.
“Didn’t even let me score a single point!”
After the match, Yu Lin approached Jiang Hong with a complicated look.
The opponent hadn’t scored a point the entire match.
Yu Lin thought if it had been him, he might never want to play tennis again.
Jiang Hong raised his head and said earnestly, “The greatest respect for an opponent is to give your all.”
Well, in truth, Jiang Hong was just enjoying dominating a weak player.
Only when he saw the opponent toss down his racket and run off did he realize the match was over.
“This is a friendly match, so besides competing, we also have to maintain friendship!”
“After all, not all schools’ cheer squads are girls!”
Yu Lin patted Jiang Hong on the shoulder and spoke with heartfelt advice.
Jiang Hong looked in Yu Lin’s direction.
Whoa!
A group of muscular men cheering definitely made an impression!
“Which school is that?”
“Engineering University!”
“Oh.”
Jiang Hong nodded, instantly understanding.
Meanwhile, when deciding on the next round, he’d better hold back a bit—otherwise, he might get beaten up!
Yu Lin saw that Jiang Hong had taken his advice to heart and felt relieved.
“By the way, isn’t your match about to start? Why haven’t you gone to prepare?”
Yu Lin smiled wryly and said, “My next opponent is Wang Cheng!”
He knew well he wasn’t a match for Wang Cheng.
During the draw, Wang Cheng—who posed some threat to Jiang Hong—was in the opposite half, but Yu Lin had unfortunately drawn him early.
However, Jiang Hong’s goal was the championship; it didn’t matter which half Wang Cheng was in.
To win the title, he had to defeat all the strongest opponents.