All-round Athlete

Chapter 320 Going to Europe to prepare for the French Open

On May 5, local time in the United States, the aerospace city of Houston.

In the Toyota Center, amidst the disappointed voices of the fans, the timer on the sidelines still showed the number "0:00".

This is the seventh game of the first round of the NBA playoffs. The Utah Jazz challenged the Houston Rockets away. Although the two superstars "Yao Mai" scored 29 points, they still couldn't stop Boozer's 35 points. The Houston Rockets lost to the Utah Jazz at home 99:103, ending their playoff journey this season.

Zhang Guan, who was watching the game, looked at the disappointed Yao on the court. At this time, Yao was still encouraging his teammates, as if telling them that he would make a comeback next year, but Zhang Guan knew that Yao missed the best of his career. One chance, starting next year, he'll be plagued by non-stop injuries until he finally retires.

"What a pity!" Zhang Guan shook his head. Although he already knew the result, he still felt very sorry when the game was over.

The Rockets lost, Dayao was naturally a little depressed, but since Zhang Guan specially came to Houston, Dayao still wanted to show his friendship as a landlord, so he hosted Zhang Guan and Sharapova at Yao Restaurant the next day.

"Try this roast duck, the authentic Peking duck." Dayao pointed to the roast duck on the table, and continued: "There used to be a Quanjude in Houston, but it closed down later, so I invited the roast duck master there."

"It's not easy to be able to eat Peking duck in the United States!" Zhang Guan sighed softly, changed his voice, and said, "Do you think that the current Rockets lack a good offensive organizer?"

"Offensive organizer? Although Alston is not a star point guard, he is qualified. The Rockets' offense should be pretty good now. Tracy McGrady averaged 24 points per game this season, and I scored 25 points. The two of us together are getting better 50 points. The inside center strengthens the outside line, but the Rockets have always had a tradition." Yao smiled, and then said: "Coach Van Gundy is also a coach who emphasizes defense, and now sports experts have been saying that the Rockets lack a team. A good backup insider, to share my pressure."

"That's right, you and Tracy McGrady's offenses are really unsolvable. When you two are all fired up, other teams in the NBA really can't defend, but have you ever thought about it? Does one of them feel bad? Or is one of them injured? At that time, as long as the other is restricted, your offense will not be smooth. You are both good offensive finishers, but not professional Offensive organizer." Zhang Guan continued: "In addition, I think the Rockets should introduce another All-Star player, or a superstar player!"

"Introduce another star? How is this possible! Don't you know that the owner of the Rockets is the most stingy in the NBA! We are not the Lakers or the Knicks." Dayao said with a smile.

"I think the 'Big Three' model will be a trend in the next few years. Imagine if LeBron, Wade and Bosh were on the same team!" Zhang Guan said.

"How is this possible! All three of them should be superstars in the NBA, and they are all in their prime. A team with three superstars? Even if the three of them are willing, the salary cap of an NBA team is limited. Dayao went on to say, "But I don't have to worry about that, anyway, I'm not the owner of the team, so what I say doesn't count."

"In the future, if you buy a team and become your own boss, just say what you want, just like Jordan!" Zhang Guan said with a smile.

"Stop teasing me, NBA teams are so expensive, I can't afford them! But in the future, if I save money, I can buy CBA teams." Dayao changed his voice, and continued: "Speaking of basketball players Things, you suddenly changed careers from track and field, why don't you come to play basketball?"

"Playing basketball? I really didn't think about it at the time." Zhang Guan said.

"You should switch to playing basketball!" Dayao looked at Zhang Guan and said, "Over 1.9 meters tall, his physical talent is stronger than that of black people. The key is to be fast enough. Once your explosiveness and your speed soar Get up, who can keep up with the breakthrough with the ball! If you really play basketball, I will definitely pull you into the national team. When the time comes to play against the Europeans, I will walk outside the three-second zone and bring out their centers. You break through one after another, and you directly disperse the opponent's defense line."

"How easy is it to play basketball? Hehe, I don't read much, so don't lie to me." Zhang Guan ignored Dayao's temptation.

Dayao smiled awkwardly, while Zhang Guan continued: "Playing basketball is much more troublesome than playing tennis. At least I can't get into the NBA. Do I have to start from the low-level domestic leagues? Playing tennis is not enough. It’s the same, a wild card from a sponsor has lifted me into the Australian Open, won a Grand Slam championship, and it’s no problem to participate in all tennis competitions in the future.”

"That's true. Playing basketball really takes too much time." Dayao nodded, and continued: "I saw a tennis masters tournament in Miami two days ago, and you didn't seem to participate in it!"

"I didn't go. I've been doing special training all this time." Zhang Guan said vaguely, "You'll know the news on View.com in a few days!"

"Okay, I wish you the French Open championship in advance!" Dayao smiled and raised his glass.

...

A few days later, Zhang Guan left the United States and flew to Europe to prepare for the French Open.

The biggest feature of the French Open is the clay court. In tennis, the clay court is second only to the hard court in terms of breadth. Especially in continental Europe, there are many clay courts, not only in France, but also in many countries in Western Europe. field. For example, the Tennis Masters Rome Station, Hamburg Station, the Tennis Tour Portugal Station, Sweden Station, Netherlands Station, Croatia Station, the Gold Tournament Germany Station, Austria Station, etc. are all used in clay courts. A player like Dahl who is good at playing clay courts can rank second in the world in terms of points. As long as he can win a French Open and a few clay court championships every year, he can raise the ATP world ranking to more than 4,000 points.

Zhang Guan did not rush directly to Paris, France, where the French Open is held, but to Germany first. One is because Sharapova's old injuries require a series of recuperation in Germany, and the other is because the training conditions in Germany are better than those in France.

In Germany, Zhang Guan specially rented a clay court for competitions for training.

"The red clay field!" Zhang Guan stomped hard, then bent down and touched the ground. Although the ground is paved with red clay, it is actually quite solid.

"It's quite strong!" Zhang Guan said involuntarily.

"Nonsense, this is red clay, you thought it was sand!" Coach Zhang smiled, and then said: "The clay court at that time was not so well paved, but with the new technology now, the clay court is also better than before. It’s much stronger. Don’t underestimate this kind of clay field. It’s much more troublesome to lay than hard ground. The bottom of the clay field is the drainage system, and then a layer of large gravel is laid on it, followed by a layer of small gravel. Then roll and compact. After rolling, the diameter of the crushed stone on the surface should not be greater than 5mm, and then lay clay and sand, and finally lay red soil. Red soil is not natural red soil, it is red soil treated with anti-slip agent, and the diameter should not be larger than 0.3 millimeters. With such fine clay, even if athletes fall down, they will not suffer from skin trauma.”

"It sounds more troublesome than laying a plastic field, and it also adds anti-slip agent, so you don't have to worry about being slipped." Envoy Zhang Guan slid his footsteps.

"Although some anti-slip agents have been added, it doesn't mean that you won't be able to slide. I always think that if you use sliding steps on clay courts, the effect is very good." Coach Zhang continued: "Let's get used to the venue and teach you Special sliding technique on some clay courts."

"Special sliding skills?" Zhang Guan's eyes lit up, and he suddenly remembered that Coach Zhang won the French Open at the age of 17. Clay is also the surface that Coach Zhang is best at. He must have many unique skills on clay.

The first chapter is delivered, during the double monthly pass period, and I have something to do this Saturday. It is agreed that this month will break out every weekend, so let’s move forward to tomorrow.