The Shanghai race started at 9 a.m. on Saturday, so Pan Xiqi set himself and Da Wei a high-speed train at 7 p.m. on Friday night.

With the weekend's games in mind, Panci was absent-minded at work this week. The whole day was muddy, and my mind had already drifted thousands of miles away. Finally made it to Friday, and Pansic wished that time would pass faster.

Finally, as soon as the time passed five o'clock, Pan Xiqi, who had already packed his luggage, couldn't wait to say hello to his colleagues, so he "poofed", put on his backpack and tennis racket, and rushed out of the door of the unit like a fly.

Due to the integrity of the rush hour, the power of the first block is very huge. Afraid that the traffic jam on the road would miss the high-speed rail time, he chose to take the subway to the high-speed rail station. Line 10 poured Line 4, and after 40 minutes, he finally arrived at Beijing South Railway Station. It took nearly twenty minutes to queue up for security checks and enter the station, and by the time he actually saw Da Wei in the waiting room, it was already six o'clock.

Seeing that there was still an hour to go, the two found a chain of express restaurants to solve the dinner. This meal was naturally paid for by Pan Xiqi, after all, he had already boasted about Haikou, and he covered all the expenses of this trip to Shanghai. During the meal, Pan Xiqi learned from Da Wei that Da Wei was also absent-minded this week, and he was nervous and a little expectant. After all, it was the first time for both of them to participate in such an official tennis match.

After eating, I walked around the station for a while, and then quickly checked in and boarded the train. The two of them found their seats and put their backpacks and tennis rackets on the luggage rack before they really settled down.

The high-speed train slowly drove out of Beijing South Railway Station, and watching the neon lights on the side of the road change the light and shadow on the train window at night, Pan Xiqi really felt that he had set off. Everything before felt a little unreal to him, and it was only now that he confirmed that he was really going to another city for a tennis tournament.

"That's the life of a professional tennis player who repeats it every day, going back and forth between different cities and different stadiums." He sighed. But the difference is that professional golfers travel to different countries, and they have traveled to all corners of the world.

Playing with mobile phones and listening to songs, more than four hours passed quickly. The development of modern modes of transportation is truly amazing, and the ancients often had to walk for months before being conquered by speeding trains in the blink of an eye.

It was close to midnight when the train arrived at Shanghai Hongqiao Station, and the evening subway had long since ceased service. The two had to take a taxi and came to the pre-determined express hotel. After a quick check-in, the two came to the room.

"Hey, Panzi, you go and ask the front desk if they made a mistake. Aren't we looking for a standard room? How do I get a double room? ”

"The big bed room is the big bed room, I want to ask you, I'm tired, wash and sleep." Pan Xiqi, who didn't dare to look at Da Wei, took a few words and went to wash.

"No, except for my father, I haven't slept in the same bed with other big men. How do you sleep in this bed? Da Wei was still standing there tangled.

"Hehe, you can do it yourself, I'll sleep first." After Pan Xiqi finished washing, he shamelessly lay down on the bed, pulled the quilt, and really fell asleep.

I didn't expect Pan Xiqi to really care about himself, so he slept like this, and Da Wei was speechless. This kid is too casual, and he still can't fight him. There was no way, Da Wei, who had been struggling for a long time, was still unable to resist the sleepiness, and finally climbed into bed.

However, at this time, Pan Xiqi was already asleep, not only put on a large font, but also pressed the quilt under him. Poor Da Wei was not only fooled by Pan Xiqi into squeezing two people into a big bed room, but he couldn't grab the quilt when he slept. In the end, I could only nest at the foot of the bed aggrievedly, curled up in a ball, and spent the first night in Shanghai very improvised.

The next morning, the two got up early. Faced with the resentful eyes of Da Wei, who had two dark eyes, Pan Xiqi chose to turn a blind eye, and instead told him about today's activity plan.

"After a while, after the two of us finished breakfast, we took a taxi to the stadium, and it was estimated that it would take about ten minutes to arrive. The first day of the game will end at about five or six o'clock in the afternoon, if we have time, should we go to the Bund or Nanjing Road? ”

"I'm going to you, I'm going to come back to make up for sleep!" Da Wei spoke.

"Wow, isn't it, it's not easy for us to come to Shanghai, you actually want to sleep in a hotel, do you have any chances." Pansizzy scolded.

"I don't care, I didn't sleep well anyway, I need to rest."

"I didn't sleep well, how could it be? I slept comfortably last night, huh? Pansiqi asked.

"Of course you're comfortable, you beast!" Looking at Pan Xiqi's harmless expression, Da Wei wanted to punch him in the nose. But the thought of partnering with him in doubles today held back. Otherwise, Pansic probably wouldn't be in such a good mood to participate in today's game.

The two arrived at the arena at half past eight, half an hour before the official start of the game. The stadium is called Qizhong Tennis Center, which may not be familiar to ordinary people, but in the eyes of tennis fans, it is a thunderous existence.

The Flag Chung Tennis Center was inaugurated in 2005 and hosted the Tennis Masters Cup for four consecutive years from 2005 to 2008. As the finals of the men's professional tennis tour, the Tennis Masters Cup is the highest level of tennis competition. The top seven players in the ATP Champions Rankings qualify for the Masters Cup, while the eighth spot is reserved for the top 20 players who are one of the four Grand Slam champions of the year, or the eighth-ranked player.

After the Masters Cup moved to London in '09, it became the venue for the ATP Shanghai Masters. As the highest-level tennis tournament outside of the four Grand Slams, almost the world's top men's tennis players gather at the Qizhong Tennis Center every October, including Pansizi's idol, the Swiss tennis cow.

Therefore, this arena has a special meaning for Pansizi. When he first signed up, he learned that the venue for the Shanghai tournament was the Qizhong Tennis Center, and Pan Xiqi instantly decided to come to the tournament. Being able to step on the venue where idols once won championships can be regarded as another kind of contact with cows.

The Qizhong Tennis Center covers a large area, with two smaller arenas in addition to the central arena, which can accommodate more than 10,000 people. Of course, it is impossible for Panci and his team to participate in the games that can be played in these main stadiums, and more than a dozen venues outside the main arena have been rented by the organizing committee to host this competition.

After entering the gate of the tennis center, following the signs, the two came to the check-in office of this amateur tennis classic.

After signing his name on the sign-in sheet and receiving all the information for the tournament, Panci hurriedly began to study the singles schedule. It turned out that a total of 56 players signed up for this tournament, and the top eight players in the series points ranked as 8 seeds directly entered the second round, and the rest of the players played from the first round. The tournament is played as a single knockout match, and only a win can advance to the next round. As with the unit match, it is also a six-game tiebreaker (tie-break).

In other words, if Panci wants to win the championship, he has to win six consecutive rounds, which is really difficult. Thankfully, the first three rounds are held on Saturday and the bottom three on Sunday. In other words, you only need to play three sets a day. This kind of intensity, for Pansiqi, is completely a piece of cake.

Looking at the doubles schedule, there are a total of 32 pairs of players who need to win five rounds in a row to win the title. The first three rounds will be played on the first day, and the semi-finals and finals will be played on the second day.

I reported two tournaments in singles and doubles, and if I want to survive until tomorrow, I need to win six matches in a row. In order to avoid a clash of time in the singles and doubles matches, Panci had to try to get as quick as possible in every match. Otherwise, in the event of a conflict, the goal of winning both titles will not be achieved.

With a plan in mind, Pansiqi turned his attention to the singles bracket. His opponent in the first round is named Su Chao, 35 years old, CTA5 level. The luck is not bad, I didn't meet a player with a higher level than myself in the first round, and the opponent's strength is not weak, which is very helpful for improving the state of the game. However, after the first round, he will immediately encounter the fourth seed of this tournament, and the CTA level has reached level seven, which is definitely a master among amateurs.

Panci is still very confident in his own strength, so the early encounter with the seeded player did not give him the slightest worry. But on the other hand, Da Wei on the side was looking at the opponent table with a sad face, and he felt a little depressed.

Pan Xiqi found Da Wei's name and found that the CTA level of his opponent was also level five.

"Hey, I thought you were the top seed, wasn't it just one level above you? What is there to worry about. Pansiqi teased.

"Of course you're not afraid of your high level. You also know me, it was an accident to be rated as level 4, but I didn't expect to meet a level 5 in the first round. Didn't you say that you can sign up for the competition if you are above level three, why don't you draw me an easy opponent? Da Wei said depressedly.

"Look at the watch, there are few real third-level ones, which are so easy for you to encounter. Remember, your focus is on doubles, and you should be active in singles. Pansiqi comforted him.

"Also, I shouldn't have any hope for singles in the first place, after all, doubles is the absolute strength of the two of us." Da Wei really thought about it, and his mood improved instantly.

"That's right. Oh no, the game is about to start, let's hurry up and report to our own venue. I'll get in touch with the doubles match later. After saying that, the two parted ways.

Pansiqi trotted all the way to Field 5, by which time the referee and the driver were already in place. A staff member who appeared to be the organizing committee was holding the list and shouting to the sidelines: "Pansiqi, is Pansiqi here?" The race started right away. ”

Just as he was about to shout a second time, Pansic hurriedly replied: "Come on, I'm sorry, the tennis center is too big, I'm a little lost." ”

"Hmph, count yourself lucky, if you don't come again, you will abstain." The staff glanced at him.

"Now that both sides are there, let's get started. The rules of the competition are all on the materials you received, so I won't talk about them. If there is no problem, I'll go first. After saying hello to the referee, the staff member left the pitch.

shook hands with the player named Su Chao, and the two picked up the side for warm-up exercises. As the referee signaled that the time was up, Pancic's first round began.