Chapter 55: Official Tournament Spot, 25K Match (Seeking Continued Reading)

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Guangzhou, Tianhe Stadium!
This time, the ITF Global Tour was being held here in Guangzhou.
Due to the upcoming Olympics next year, the number of hope tournaments this year had increased significantly compared to previous years.
Otherwise, it would have been much harder for Jiang Hong to participate in the competition.
The International Tennis Federation also hoped to promote tennis in China and boost the sport’s influence.
Compared to last time when he started from the qualifiers, this time Jiang Hong’s ATP ranking played a role.
He entered the main draw directly—not as a seeded player, but at least he didn’t have to go through qualifying rounds.
So after arriving in Guangzhou, Jiang Hong went straight to the hotel arranged by the tournament committee.
Just after he put down his luggage, there was a knock on the door.
Curious, Jiang Hong opened it.
“Jiang Hong, I knew for sure you’d be participating in this tournament,” said the smiling figure outside.
Indeed, it was someone familiar.
It was Zhang Long from the Shanghai team, who had failed to earn points last time but was back for this event.
“You’re here for the tournament too!” Jiang Hong chuckled and invited Zhang Long inside.
Zhang Long found a chair and sat down, spreading his hands.
“Getting into this tournament wasn’t easy. Our team held a selection match since my last performance wasn’t great. Finally, I barely secured a spot.”
“Unlike you, who goes straight into the main draw well-rested, I have to start from qualifiers—and there are three rounds this time!”
Even for a wealthy team like Shanghai, not every player gets a chance to enter; competition was fierce.
Usually, only the strong rise, the weak fall.
Of course, that was just the general principle.
The Guangzhou leg of the ITF tour was a higher-level event than the Shanghai leg, classified as a 25K tournament.
The prize money and ranking points were greater.
Champion: 25 points and $3,600; Runner-up: 16 points and $2,100; Semifinalist: 8 points and $1,200; Quarterfinalist: 3 points and $800; First-round win: 1 point and $400!
Even the runner-up in Guangzhou would earn more points than Jiang Hong’s previous championship.
Jiang Hong’s only goal for this tournament was the championship!
There were many entrants, hence the three rounds of qualifiers.
The main draw had 32 slots: 20 players entered directly based on ATP rankings, 8 qualified through qualifiers, and 4 were wild cards.
With a ranking near nine hundred, Jiang Hong naturally wasn’t seeded but had no problem entering the main draw.
Seeing Zhang Long’s envious expression, Jiang Hong smiled and reassured him, “Don’t worry, with your skill, making the main draw shouldn’t be a problem!”
Zhang Long looked up at Jiang Hong.

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“But who knows if there won’t be another freak like you in the qualifiers!”
Jiang Hong smiled at this.
Obviously, no player of Jiang Hong’s caliber would appear in the qualifiers. No domestic player matched his skill.
Abroad, players of Jiang Hong’s level were already competing in the tour or at least the ATP Challenger events.
Most domestic tennis players had clustered skill levels; those Zhang Long couldn’t beat were already in the main draw.
Foreign players without direct acceptance into the main draw rarely played qualifiers—it would be a huge risk.
Zhang Long shook his head and said, “Enough worrying. Let’s head to the court to practice, don’t want to get rusty.”
“Alright!”
Jiang Hong nodded. He wasn’t tired and welcomed the chance to loosen up.
Zhang Long had competed extensively in youth and middle school tournaments, so he was very familiar with Tianhe Sports Center.
Soon, he led Jiang Hong around to the courts!
Clearly, they weren’t early; many players were already practicing.
Unlike the Shanghai event, the Guangzhou tournament also included women’s matches.
Jiang Hong noticed many girls practicing as well.
As for their looks…
Jiang Hong could only say beauty was in the eye of the beholder.
Most tennis players trained outdoors, so their skin had a healthy tone.
“Looks like there’s no space!” Jiang Hong glanced around and said.
“No worries, leave it to me!” Zhang Long flashed a confident smile and quickly ran onto a court.
After some whispered negotiation, he beckoned Jiang Hong over.
Jiang Hong approached and greeted the other players with a smile.
He wasn’t familiar with these players either.
He was like a catfish suddenly jumping into the tennis circle.
“Let’s play a set, so you don’t lose your rhythm!” Jiang Hong said, taking the ball.
Zhang Long had two qualifier matches tomorrow.
Playing three qualifier matches within two days was a tough test of endurance.
What?
You think it’s unfair?
Then earn more points, improve your ranking, and strive to become a high-seeded player—that’s when the perks come.
Since returning, Jiang Hong hadn’t faced anyone else in competition.

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Most of his time was spent training.
Standing at the baseline, Jiang Hong tossed the ball in the air.
“Bang!”
With an explosive sound, the ball flew straight to Zhang Long’s service box!
The serve wasn’t tricky in angle or placement.
Zhang Long rushed to retrieve it and barely got it back.
Jiang Hong was ready and immediately hit a sharp cross-court shot, leaving Zhang Long powerless to respond.
Because it was practice, there were no breaks between points.
When tired, they simply called a timeout.
Fifteen minutes passed.
The score was a harsh 3-0!
“Stop, stop, stop!” Zhang Long raised his hand, calling off the game.
Jiang Hong tossed the ball into the basket beside him.
“Rest a bit and continue?” Jiang Hong asked with a smile, sitting beside Zhang Long.
“No, no, better not,” Zhang Long shook his head vigorously.
“If I keep playing with you, I might lose my mindset before the actual matches even start!”
Suddenly, Zhang Long turned his head, his eyes filled with curiosity.
“Wait, Old Jiang, it hasn’t been that long since we last met, but I feel your level has improved a lot, especially your power—it’s much stronger than before!”
Would Jiang Hong admit to having an unfair advantage?
He shrugged and offered an excuse.
“No choice. Last time I faced that Deshill, he had a cannon serve. It was tough to handle, so I figured I needed to get stronger!”
Still, Zhang Long was puzzled. Could Jiang Hong’s skill really have improved so much in less than a month?
“What’s your training plan?”
Jiang Hong had nothing to hide and told him everything honestly.
“My training intensity is a bit higher than yours, but not by that much. If it works this well, I’ll try it myself!” Zhang Long muttered.
What Zhang Long didn’t know was that Jiang Hong’s ‘week’ of training actually only consisted of three days.