Pala/Pala Larga/Pala Corta--2 Recent Independent Matches--Iparralde v Hegoalde

Two non-InPala independent matches which featured an Iparralde (North Basque) v Hegoalde (South Basque) rivalry (although one of the participants in both matches, Pablo Fusto, is an Argentinian who plays virtually all of his Pala in Hegoalde) were played recently. Last year, in the FIPV (Federacion International de Pelota Vasa) World Championships, the Pala Corta final (FIPV via Toute de la Pelota Basque Youtube) was won by Iparralde (Dan Necol-Sylvain Brefel) against Hegoalde's Esteban Gaubeka-Emiliano Skufca). Hegoalde was looking to "even the score" and even "take the lead" in these matches, but it was not to be, as Necol-Brefel put up a wall to stop them. Not even a single joko (set) could breach that wall.

May 10, 2019. 

Champions du Monde Challenge--Pala Corta v Pala Larga)

Plaza Berri, Biarritz (1) (2)

Necol-Brefel (PC) 2 Fusto-Ibargarai (PL) 0

(15-10, 15-8) (30-18)

(France 3 Aquitaine TV Facebook full match video)

Promotion Poster (Innpala Twitter)

Player information and differences between the implements (Dan Necol Twitter)

The elegant, "retro" Plaza Berri hosted this special match between the 2018 Pala Corta World Champions (see match linked in the introduction) and 2018 Pala Larga World Champions (Mundo Parejas--Mungia (1) (2).

(Full match video--EITB). This match was interesting for two reasons: 

1. The Iparralde-Hegoalde subtext.

2. The implements. The difference between Pala Corta and Pala Larga is in the implements and pelota. The Pala Corta bat weighs between 780-800 grams (27.5-28.2 ounces). The Pala Larga bat weighs between 920-940 grams (32.4-33.2 ounces). The extra weight in the Pala Larga bat can be seen in its slightly thicker hitting surface. The lengths of the two bats are about the same, around 46 centimeters (18 inches). The Larga ball weighs 10 grams more: 100 to 90 grams (3.5-3.2 ounces). The circumference of the pelota is about the same (around 3.5 inches). Pala Corta is played on a short (30 or 36 meter--98'5" or 118 feet) court in both Iparralde and Hegoalde. Pala Larga is played on 36 and 54 (177'2") courts exclusively by professionals in Hegoalde (Mundo Parejas is a the last of the long court tournaments). 

Given this data, and the fact that most Pala Larga is played on short courts, the court was no stranger to either of these teams. Which pelota was used (or if they were rotated) is unknown. With either of the bats, the pelotas are consistently struck with a "launch velocity" (term taken from a new American baseball "metric") of 90-95 mph (150 kph) by players carrying the bats, and hitting on the run off the front or back foot, as well as from a set position as a baseball, cricket, or pessipallo player would. Except these palistas hit the ball with one hand, and are ambidextrous. Think about that the next time you watch your favorite baseball, cricket, or pessipallo player bat. Pala is not as fast as Remonte or Cesta Punta/Jai Alai, to my knowledge, but it is much more difficult to control shots, since the the hitting area is very narrow. 

As for the match, the Pala Corta champions won, again in 2 jokos (the standard length of a Pala Corta match). Interestingly, Pala Larga is always played to 3 jokos with, obviously, no tie breaker. This may have had more of an effect on F-I than any pelota or implement difference. The maximum PC match of this duration is 72 or 67 points depending on whether the tie breaker is to 10 or 5. The maximum PL match duration is 95 points. The shortness of the PC game might have inhibited F-Ib, just as it might have inhibited F-Im in the match above. Of course the PC players might have something to say about that, particularly when they rejoin their colleagues on the PL circuit. :) And, in the end, in the last 8 months, geographically speaking, the tally is now Iparralde 3 and Hegoalde 0 (7 jokos to 2). For Hegoalde, there is always next year. 

April 27, 2019

Portet-sur-Garonne (1) (2)

Pala Corta Pro Tour Final

Necol-Brefel 2 Fusto-Imanol 0 (Pascal Bru Youtube)

(15-8; 15-12) (30-20)

Promotion Poster (Stade Toulousian Pelota Twitter)

Pala Corta Pro Tour Competition Context (Pala Corta Pro Tour Facebook Events)

The third edition of the Pala Corta Pro Tour included 6 present or recently--within the last three years--retired InnPala pros: Dan Necol, Sylvain Brefel (retired), Pablo Hernan "Fusto", Xabier Ibargai, Erik Zubiri (retired), and Imanol Ibanez (retired), along with 6 promising amateurs. The players were organized in two Groups, and each played a "League" round robin: 2 sets to 10 with a tie breaker to 5. The 3rd place match and Final played 2 sets to 15 points with a tie breaker to 5. I have found no information about the results of the round robins or third place match. The final was won comfortably by N-B, although the second joko (set) was more competitive than the first, in which N-B opened the joko with the first 6 points and cruised from there. There was a bit of controversy with the 13-12--14-12 point of the 2nd joko and the decision went the way of N-B. On the day, 8 matches were played in 6 hours on the short court, all for an admission price of 5 euros. (5.60 US dollars). 

2018 Pala Corta Pro Tour Final and selected preliminary matches

*=amateur

April 15, 2018

Necol-Brefel 2 Zubiri-Brian*-Ibargari 1 (Ligue Occitaine de Pelota Basque via Toute sur la Pelote Basque Youtube extended highlights)
(12-15, 15-6, 10-6) (37-27)

Note: Erik Zubiri was had to retire after being hit in the face with a pelota hit by his team mate Xabier Ibargarai (3-5--19:50 on the video) in the second joko. He was replaced by Simon Brian.

Other matches: Highlights (Toute sur la Pelote Basque Youtube)

Brian*-Figeac* 2 Fusto-Firpo* 1 (Toute sur la Pelote Basque highlights)
(10-7, 6-10, 5-3) (21-19) 

Necol-Brefel 2 Dordenne*-Hourmat* 0 (Toute sur la Pelote Basque highlights)
(10-7, 10-1) (20-8) 15:50

Zubiri-Ibargarai 2- Brian*-Figeac* 0 (Toute sur la Pelote Basque highlights)

(10-2, 10-9) (20-11) 

Zubiri-Ibargarai 2 Fusto-Firpo* 0 (Toute sur la Pelote Basque highlights)
(10-7; 10-8) (20-15) 

Jai Alai/Cesta Punta--A NEW PAGE--DANIA JAI ALAI GAME 10 (FLORIDA SINGLES CHAMPIONSHIP)--DAY BY DAY

NOTE: SEE G10 6/12 EVENING PERFORMANCE REPORT: A GREAT GAME: 

Dania Jai Alai plays 12 games in 7 performances every week during its season. The 10th game, the Florida Singles Championship, is the late game front court singles match (8 players, occasionally there is one back court player and/or an early game player in the game). The Dania Spring-Summer Season runs from May 1-June 30. That's about 9 weeks, about 63 games do determine a Florida Singles Champion. Most wins is the determining factor. The FSC is one leg of the Dania Triple Crown of  Late Game Singles, Late Game Doubles (Game 12), and all game championships that are determined by number of wins. Erik Mendezabal (late-front) won all three legs of the Triple Crown in the recently completed Dania Fall-Winter Season (January 2-April 14, 2019).

For this season, beginning with the third week of the season, a special lens will be focused on Game 10. As often as I can, I will watch the game, do a point by point "map" of it (quiniela Jai Alai is complex in that it is played in single point increments where the winner keeps playing and the loser "goes to the back of the line.") In addition I will provide commentary and keep a running Table of the leaders. I'm not planning to dedicate my life to this game, and as I have no recording capability, I will miss some games. The daily table will always be updated. This is an experiment to see if I can find any patterns in this game over time. It is also a great incentive for me to watch the game (which rarely takes more than 15 minutes) closely. Game 10 analysis will be added also to the weekly Dania Page, which tracks daily and weekly player performance. I hope you find it entertaining and, perhaps educational. The page is located on the right side of the blog, below the current results.

Dania Jai Alai: The Florida Singles Championship 

Mano: Eskuz Banakako Txapelketa-Campeonato Manomanista De Lep.M 2019--Semi-Finals

Eskuz Banakako Txapelketa-Campeonato Manomanista De Lep.M, the premier professional Mano singles championship competition, began  on April 14, 2019 with two play-in matches. It will end on June 2, 2019 with a final. It is a seeded ladder knockout tournament consisting of 4 1/16 round play in matches, followed by seeded 1/8 and Quarter-finals. Quarter final winners will play a Semi-final and Semi-final winners will play in the final. There will also be a third place match.

The competition will be in four Groups (A-D). The seeding works as follows:

Seeds: (D/F) =delantero/front; (Z/B) = zaguero/back

Group A: 1/8: Irribarria (D/F); 1/4: Altuna III (D/F)

Group B: 1/8: Rezusta (Z/B); 1/4: Elezkano II (D/F)

Group C: 1/8: Bengoetxea VI (D/F); 1/4: Urrutikoetxea (D/F)

Group D: 1/8: Jaka (D/F); 1/4: Ezkurdia (D/F)

2019 schedule (Baiko Pilota--formerly Asegarce) Note: this also links to full results of all Manonista Tournaments back to 1999.

2019 ASPE Schedule 

21Iguales.com complete tournament coverage

21iguales Twitter feed live scoring page

List of previous winners going back to 1940 (Baiko Pilota)

Available Final match videos

1948 (Gallestegi 22 Atano III 6--highlights only) ;

(1991 Galarza III 22 Retegi II 15--added April 17, 2019)  ; (1992 (Galarza III 22 Retegi II 12--added April 27, 2017) ; 1993 (Retegi II 22 Galarza III 19) ; 1995 (Beloki 22 Errandonea 15) ; 1997 (Arretxe 22 Elkoro 18)

2000 (Eugi 22 Beloki 13) ; 2001 (Beloki 22 Eugi 8) ; 2002 (Barriola 22 Beloki 3) ; 2003 (Patxi Ruiz 22 Olaizola II 7) ;  2004 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Xala 12) : 2005 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 18) ; 2006  (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Olaizola II 17) ; 2007 (Olaizola II 22 Barriola 10) ; 2008 (Bengoetxea VI 22 Barriola 11) ; 2009 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Olaizola II 12)

2010 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Xala 13--1:18:45) 2011 (Xala 22 Olaizola II 19--1:27:27) ; 2012 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 7) ;  2013 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 7--1:17:25) ; 2014 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Retegi BI 9--1:21:40) ;  2015 (Urrutikoetxea 22 Olaizola II 19) ; 2016 (Irribarria 22 Urrutikoetxea 13) ; 2017 (Bengoetxea VI 22-Irribarria 18--added April 17, 2019) ; 2018 (Altuna III 22 Oliazola II 14--added April 17, 2019)

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Play-ins ; 1/16 Round ; 1/8 Round ; 1/4 Round; Semi-Finals; 3rd Place Match--cancelled;

FINAL

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Semi-Finals

May 19, 2019

Astelena, Eibar (1) (2)

Irribarria (Group A 1/8 seed) 22

Elezkano II (Group B 1/4 seed) 12 (EITB--match begins at 1:01:15)

Highlights (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winners always listed first) (21Iguales Twitter)

0-2; 3-2; 3-3; 9-3; 9-5; 11-5; 11-7; 16-7; 16-10; 18-10; 18-11; 20-11; 20-12; 22-12

Scoring (EITB)

Irribarria +16 (including 3 service aces and 8 high and deep shots) -2

Elezkano II +10 (3a) -7

Balls in play: 148; I 79 E 69

Time of the match 35:14

Match article (21Iguales)

May 18, 2019

Bizkaia, Bilbo (Bilbao) (1) (2)

The only survivor of the 1/8 seeded players in the Banakako Txapelketa/Campionato Manomanista (Singles) championship advanced to the Final when he demolished the man who beat him in the recently concluded Binakako Txapelketa/Mundo Parejas (Pairs) championship, Danel Elezkano, 22-12. Irribarria did it with dominant figures: +16 (including 3 service aces) - 2. Of his 13 non service ace points, 8 came on high and deep shots. Astelena (Eibar) is one of the smaller conchas (courts) that professionals play on. Still it was remarkable that one of Irribarria's "steam shovel" bombs actually hit the back wall, a site seldom seen in Mano. Several other deep shots put Elezkano in such a poor position that Irribarria was able to win points with easy kill shots. Elezkano's precision short offense and tremendous defense in the front court was useless against Irribaria's bombs. It is always impressive to see him get his left hand under the ball and crash it high off the wall. "Meet Irribarria's hand, see the Basque Country," the pelotas say when they talk to each other. He also played very well with his right hand in this match, which is more "bad news" for his opponents. This match propelled him into the Final on June 2 at Bizkaia, Bilbo (Bilbao), against Mikel Urrutikoetxea. Urrutikoetxea is a big, strong, converted back court player, so he may have the tools to counter Irribarria's power. But Irribarria is riding a wave of momentum. This will be the second time in the last four years the two have met in this final. In the first, in 2016, when both had recently burst on the scene, Irribarria won 22-13. Full match video of that match is available via EITB.

Urrutikoetxea (Group C 1/4 seed) 22

Ezkurdia (Group D 1/4 seed) 14 (EITB--match begins at 1:23:45)

Fronton TV (Castilian)

Highlights (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winner always listed first) (21Iguales)

1-0; 1-1; 3-1; 3-3; 4-3; 4-4; 14-4; 14-7; 15-7; 15-10; 16-10; 16-12; 20-12; 20-14; 22-14

Scoring (EITB)

Urrutikoetxea +17 (including 4 service aces) -7

Ezkurdia +7(2a) -5

Balls in play: 251; U-129 E 122

Time of the match 60:49

Match article (21Iguales)

Urrutikoetxea punched his ticket to the final, using a 10 point run that gave him a 14-4 lead, as the springboard to victory. The match was fairly even before and after that. Urrutikoetxea jumped off to 9-3 lead, but Ezkurdia cut that to 4. After the big run, Ezkurdia outscored Urrutikoetxea by 2, too little, too late. Urrutkoetxea did not have the best day (-7), but his +17 neutralized the errors. Ezkurdia simply couldn't get his offense going (+7) and his 5 errors pretty much nullified that. 

Main Nue: Esku Pilota begins its 2019 Tournament Season--and an Interesting one v two match

Esku Pilota, the organization that manages most 2019 Elite Pro Tournaments (as well as other "Open" Tournaments, recently completed its first EP Tournament of the year. 

Tournois d'Itxassou (source for all TdI scores: Esku Pilota Resultats)

*Not on Esku Pilota Player Page

All matches were played at Atharri Fronton, Itxassou (1) (2)

Note that Tournois d'Itxassou was played on a "hybrid" concha (court). It is a standard mur a gauche (3 wall) with a "drop in" side and back dugout. So there are trinquet elements, but there is no right wall, making for an interesting combination of possibilities. 

FINAL:

May 11, 2019

Etcheverry-Ducassou 40 Ospital-Xala 29 (Pilota Ttiki condensed full match video)

Selected linescore (winners always listed first) (Esku Pilota)

2-2; 3-3; 4-4; 7-7; 8-8; 9-9; 10-10; 17-12; 26-26 28-26; 40-29

*Match article, with audio interview with Baptiste Ducassou and video of the last few points* (Esku Pilota)

This was a hard fought match until almost the 4th decade. Ducassou was interesting to watch in the way he exploited the possibilities of two wall winners to the left side which would go off the court. Equal at 26, Xala gifted E-D two points which sent them on their way to a 14-3 run that turned a "nail biter" into a rout.

Semi-finals

May 7, 2019

Ospital-Xala* 40 P. Larralde-B. Larralde (seeded in) 24 (Pilota Ttiki condensed full match video)

Condensed linescore: (winners always listed first

1-0; 1-1; 2-1; 2-2; 2-3; 9-3; 9-4; 11-4; 11-6; 14-6; 14-8; 16-8; 16-11; 17-11; 17-12; 20-12; 20-16; 22-16; 22-18; 25-18; 25-19; 28-19; 28-20; 32-20; 32-24; 40-24

As expected, O-X used a strategy of keeping the ball away from P. Larralde as much as possible to create maximum pressure on the other EP debutant in this tournament, brother Bixente Larralde. The strategy worked to perfection, though in the end P. Larralde actually had more balls in play the B. (129-100 by my count). Ospital also had 9 service aces. 

Etcheverry-Ducassou 40 Bielle-Harismendy (seeded in) 31 (Pilota Ttiki condensed full match video)

Selected linescore (winners always listed first)

8-11; 10-12; 13-13; 21-14; 37-28; 37-31; 40-31

Match article for both matches (Esku Pilota)

A 7 point run in early to mid match paved the way for E-D's comfortable win.

Quarter-finals

May 3, 2019

Etcheverry-Ducassou 40 Monce-X. Lambert 27 (Pilota Ttiki condensed full match video)

Selected linescore (winners always listed first)

6-6; 7-7; 8-8; 40-27

This was Maxime Etcheverry's first match as an Esku Pilota Elite Pro. He got off to a bit of a nervous start with several errors, but Ducassou was able to steady the ship, playing excellent defense, and finally helping his team pull away to a relatively easy win. 

Ospital-Xala* 40 Etcheverria*-Guichandut 35 (Pilota Ttiki condensed full video)

Selected Linescore (winners always listed first)

0-7; 10-18; 20-21; 26-26; 28-28; 29-29; 30-30; 34-34; 40-35

Time of match: about 1 and a half hours

Match article for both matches (Esku Pilota)

This turned out to be the most competitive match of the entire tournament, with amateur Enaut Etchererria playing a very strong match, helping his team gain the initiative. But Ospital played a steady, effective match and helped his team to a 10-3 run that put them back in contention. The match was even int the 3rd decade and well into the fourth, before O-X were able to put together a 6-1 run at the end. 

-----------------

Independent Matches

May 17, 2019

Trinquet Barria, Hasparren--Trinquet (old and new (1) (2) Hasparren

Etcheverry-B. Larralde (both 1st year Esku Pilota and FFPB Championat de France winners) 40

Ducassou (arriere and FFPB Championnat de France Elite Pro Individual Champion) 26

(Pilota Ttiki Youtube condensed full match video

Selected linescore (winners always listed first)

11-5; 12-12; 40-26

A fascinating concept, to pit the singles Elite Pro World Champion against two amateur champions (Pilota Ttiki condensed full match video) who gained experience in the FFPB Elite Pro par Equipes competition. In the end, E-B.L were able to force Ducassou to move enough to take advantage of his increasing fatigue and win comfortably. The trinquet was a little too big for one to beat two on this occasion, but Ducassou made it interesting. 

Lever de rideau (curtain raiser)

Cigarroa*-Benesse* (blue) 40 Alcasena*-Garat* (green) 16 (Pilota Ttiki Youtube condensed full match video)

*Not on the Esku Pilota roster at present.

Selected linescore (winners always listed first)

2-2; 17-2; 30-11; 40-16

Match article for both matches (Esku Pilota)

Promotion Poster (Esku Pilota)

The beginning of this "lever de rideau" tells the story as C-B took a huge lead and then continually increased it to win in a rout.

UPCOMING:

TOURNOIS PILOTARIENAK--ANGLET--MAY 24-29, 2019

SEMI-FINALS

MAY 24

P. LARRALDE-WALTARY v ETCHEGARAY-HARISMENDY

OSPITAL-GUICHANDUT v ECHEVERRIA*-DUCASSOU

MAY 29

FINAL

Mano: Eskuz Banakako Txapelketa-Campeonato Manomanista De Lep.M 2019--1/4 Round

Eskuz Banakako Txapelketa-Campeonato Manomanista De Lep.M, the premier professional Mano singles championship competition, began  on April 14, 2019 with two play-in matches. It will end on June 2, 2019 with a final. It is a seeded ladder knockout tournament consisting of 4 1/16 round play in matches, followed by seeded 1/8 and Quarter-finals. Quarter final winners will play a Semi-final and Semi-final winners will play in the final. There will also be a third place match.

The competition will be in four Groups (A-D). The seeding works as follows:

Seeds: (D/F) =delantero/front; (Z/B) = zaguero/back

Group A: 1/8: Irribarria (D/F); 1/4: Altuna III (D/F)

Group B: 1/8: Rezusta (Z/B); 1/4: Elezkano II (D/F)

Group C: 1/8: Bengoetxea VI (D/F); 1/4: Urrutikoetxea (D/F)

Group D: 1/8: Jaka (D/F); 1/4: Ezkurdia (D/F)

2019 schedule (Baiko Pilota--formerly Asegarce) Note: this also links to full results of all Manonista Tournaments back to 1999.

2019 ASPE Schedule 

21Iguales.com complete tournament coverage

21iguales Twitter feed live scoring page

List of previous winners going back to 1940 (Baiko Pilota)

Available Final match videos

1948 (Gallestegi 22 Atano III 6--highlights only) ;

(1991 Galarza III 22 Retegi II 15--added April 17, 2019)  ; (1992 (Galarza III 22 Retegi II 12--added April 27, 2017) ; 1993 (Retegi II 22 Galarza III 19) ; 1995 (Beloki 22 Errandonea 15) ; 1997 (Arretxe 22 Elkoro 18)

2000 (Eugi 22 Beloki 13) ; 2001 (Beloki 22 Eugi 8) ; 2002 (Barriola 22 Beloki 3) ; 2003 (Patxi Ruiz 22 Olaizola II 7) ;  2004 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Xala 12) : 2005 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 18) ; 2006  (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Olaizola II 17) ; 2007 (Olaizola II 22 Barriola 10) ; 2008 (Bengoetxea VI 22 Barriola 11) ; 2009 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Olaizola II 12)

2010 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Xala 13--1:18:45) 2011 (Xala 22 Olaizola II 19--1:27:27) ; 2012 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 7) ;  2013 (Olaizola II 22 Mtz. de Irujo 7--1:17:25) ; 2014 (Mtz. de Irujo 22 Retegi BI 9--1:21:40) ;  2015 (Urrutikoetxea 22 Olaizola II 19) ; 2016 (Irribarria 22 Urrutikoetxea 13) ; 2017 (Bengoetxea VI 22-Irribarria 18--added April 17, 2019) ; 2018 (Altuna III 22 Oliazola II 14--added April 17, 2019)

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Play-ins ; 1/16 Round ; 1/8 Round ; 1/4 Round; Semi-Finals; 3rd Place Match--cancelled

FINAL

---------------------------------------------------------------------

1/4

May 6, 2019

Group B

Beotibar, Tolosa (1) (2)

Elezkano II (seeded in) 22 P. Etxeberria 13 (there is no match video for this match)

*Highlights* (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winner always listed first) (21Iguales)

1-0; 1-1; 4-1; 4-2; 6-2; 6-6; 10-6; 10-7; 12-7; 12-8; 13-8; 13-12; 20-12; 20-13; 22-13

Scoring (21Iguales)

Elezkano II +10 (including 2 service aces) -4

P. Etxeberria +9 (2a) -12

Balls in play: 222

Time of the match: 44:00

P. Etxeberria, the last of the "Cinderella's" in this competition, saw the clock strike midnight as Elezkano II used a 7-0 run to turn a close match into a comfortable victory. Etxeberria was his own worst enemy, gifting 12 points to a player who is much to good not to take advantage of such largesse.

May 5, 2019

Group C

Bizkaia, Bilbo (Bilbao) (1) (2)

***Urrutikoetxea (seeded in) 22Bengoetxea VI 8*** (EITB--match begins at 1:00:04)

*Highlights* (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winner always listed first) (21Iguales)

3-0; 3-1; 5-1; 5-2; 6-2; 6-4; 10-4; 10-6; 17-6; 17-7; 19-7; 19-8; 22-8

Scoring (EITB)

Urrutikoetxea +14 -2

Bengoetxea VI +6 (including 1 service ace) -8

Balls in play: 225

Urrutikoetxea 119 Bengoetxea VI 106

Time of the match: 47:39

Match article (21Iguales)

A big 7 point run halfway through the match gave Urrutkoetxea an easy win. He played a fine overall match (+12 net), while Bengoetxea's -2 net (including 8 errors) sealed his fate. 

May 4, 2019

Group D

Labrit, Iruna (Pamplona) (1) (2)

***Ezkurdia (seeded in) 22 Jaka 14*** (EITB--match begins at 1:08:17)

*Highlights* (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winner always listed first) (21Iguales)

0-1; 5-1; 5-2; 11-2; 11-4; 14-4; 14-10; 17-10; 17-13; 20-13; 20-14; 22-14

Scoring (EITB)

Ezkurdia +12 (including 1 service ace) -3

Jaka +11 -10

Balls in play: 282

Ezkurdia 145 Jaka 137

Time of the match: 50:40

Match article (21Iguales)

May 3, 2019

Group A

Atano III, Donostia (San Sebastian) (1) (2)

Ezkurdia built a huge lead (11-2, 14-4), then survived a 6 point run by Jaka and rebuilt the lead almost to its greatest extent, winning going away. Jaka could not stay away from the shoals, caused by 8 errors, that caused him to run aground.

***Irribarria 22 Altuna III (seeded in) 18*** (EITB--match begins at 30:55)

Fronton TV Youtube (Castilian)

*Highlights* (EITB)

Condensed linescore (winner always listed first) (21Iguales)

1-0; 1-5; 9-5; 9-9; 11-9; 11-14; 12-14; 12-16; 20-16; 20-17; 21-17; 21-18; 22-18

Scoring (EITB):

Irribarria +20 (including 2 service aces) -4

Altuna III +14 (5a) -2

Irribarria 8 left wall winners Altuna III 4

Irribarria 4 deep passes Altuna III 1

Balls in play: 234

Irribarria 119 Altuna III 115

Time of the match: 52:23

Match article (21Iguales)

Last week Irribarria played quite poorly in a sloppy 22-20 victory over Victor. He made 9 errors yet survived to "tell the tale". This week, he played a brilliant match, +20 -4. So did defending champion Altuna III (+14 (including 5 service aces) -2). The match featured big runs and 3 lead changes. A 5-0 run put the defending champion ahead. An 8 point run give Irribarria a 9-5 lead. A 4 point run equalized for Altuna III. A 5 point run put him ahead 14-11. At 16-12, he was 6 points from victory but Irribarria answered with an 8 point run that put the match away. Irribarria used his "steam shovel" left hand effectively at the end to repeatedly put Altuna III on the back foot, leading to easy winners and showing how devastating he can be in this format when he is on his game. It was, arguably, the best played match of the tournament so far.

Main Nue--FFPB Championnat de France Par Equipes (Pairs)--Info About Competition--List of Winners Back to 2007--FINALS

The 2019 FFPB (Federation Francaise de Pelote Basque) Championnat de France par Equipes (pairs) Tournament began on March 10, 2019 and ended  with a final on May 5. There will be two competitions, Group A and Group B. 20 players are  involved. FFPB has provided a "dossier" (.pdf format, 9p.) explaining how the tournament worked and who the players in each group were. The competition began with a round robin League in both groups. The fifth place finishers in each group were eliminated. Then the 1st place finisher in Group B played against the 4th place finisher in Group A. The winner played in the Group A Semi-finals as the #4 team. The loser played in the Group B Semi-finals as the #2 team.  This was a twist that made the competition very interesting. A Group B team had a chance to be promoted within the space of one competition. The semi-finals were contested between the #1-#4 and #2-#3 in each group. The winners met in Finals on April 28 (Group A) and May 5 (Group B).

Player profiles at Esku Pilota
Player profiles at Pilota Ttiki

Group A:

Augusti Waltary-Peio Guichandut (defending Champions)

Peio Larralde-Bixintxo Bilbao

Mathieu Ospital-Baptiste Ducassou (runner up and Champion respectively of recently concluded FFPB Main Nue Individuel Competition)

Julien Etchegaray-Ximun Lambert

Antton Monce-Thierry Harismendy

Group B:

Phillipe Bielle-Bixentxe Cubiat

Alexis Inchauspe (winner of Group B Main Nue Individuel)-Antton Amulet

Laurent Lambert (runner up of Group B Main Nue Individuel)-Cedric Lucu

Vincent Elgart-Mickael Palomes

Mattin-Olcomendy-Ion Iturbe

Note: Elgart and Iturbe were Group A players in the Individuel competition. Harismendy and Amulet did not play in the Individuel competition. Pascal de Ezcurra, Gregory Aguirre, and Mikael Darmendrail (all Group B Indviduel) are not playing in this championship.

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NOTE: RECORD OF PREVIOUS CHAMPIONSHIPS (2007-2018) IS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST.

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Qualification Round: Week 1; Week 2; Week 3; Week 4; Week 5 and Barrage: April 13, 2019: Group B #1 v Group A #4

Semi-Finals:

Finals: Group A; Group B

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Competition preview article (Pilota Ttiki)

FINALS:

Group A:

April 28, 2019

Trinquet Moderne, Bayonne (1) (2)

Larralde-Bilbao (#1, 6-0, +86) 40

Ospital-Ducassou (#2, 4-2, -1) 37 (Pilota Ttiki Youtube condensed full match video)

Audiense Audiovisuel Youtube full match video (added October 22, 2019)

36 photos (FFPB)

Selected linescore (winners always listed first)

2-8; 8-8; 14-14; 17-26; 30-30; 31-31; 31-35; 35-35; 36-36; 40-37

There were 8 equal scores in the match.

Time of match: about 1 hour 40 minutes.

Partial scoring (FFPB)

Larralde 7 service aces, Ospital 8

Match article (FFPB)

This was a classic match between the number 1 and 2 Group A teams. It was like a heavyweight boxing classic, punch, counter punch. There were 8 equal scores and L-B came back from 6, 9, and 4 point deficits to win. D-O controlled the match throughout, but L-B finally siezed the initiative at the very end.  The struggle took an hour and 40 minutes and saved the best for last as the 4 best players (at the moment) in Main Nue battled it out, an appreciative packed house at Bayonne's Trinquet Moderne enjoying every moment. 

Group B:

May 5, 2019

Trinquet Chihar, Souraide (1) (2)

Bielle-Cubiat (#2, 5-1 +54) 40

Inchauspe-Amulet (#1, 4-3 -14) 16 (Pilota Ttiki Youtube condensed full match video)

26 photos (FFPB)

Selected linescore: (winners always listed first)

3-0; 6-2; 10-5; 16-9; 21-12; 23-14; 40-16

Partial Scoring (FFPB)

Bielle 6 service aces, Inchauspe 1

Time of the match: about 1 hour and 15 minutes

Match article (FFPB)

B-C led from start to finish, increasing their lead throughout the match, and finishing it off in style, with a 17-2 run. Cubiat was excellent in the back, as Inchauspe's service ace figures showed. His serve was a big factor in his team's success (see tournament service statistics below). However, in this match he had one ace. Cubiat was the player receiving most of Inchauspe's serves.

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Qualification Final Table: April 8, 2019

Group A:

Larralde-Bilbao (4-0 +78)

Ospital-Ducassou (3-1 -3)

Waltary-Guichandut (2-2 +42)

Monce-Harrismendy (2-3 -16)

Etchegaray-X. Lambert (0-4 -78)*

Group B:

Inchauspe-Amulet (3-2 +6)

Bielle-Cubiat (3-1 +11)

Elgart-Palomes (2-2 +14)

Olcomendy-Iturbe (2-2 -14)

L. Lambert-Lucu (0-4 -33)*

*eliminated

Available cumulative scoring. Partial data is available for service aces. Service aces for Olcomendy and Inchauspe are provided for both A and B as they were substitutes in the A group. Source is FFPB match articles.

Final

DNP: Did Not Play

NA: Not Available

Group A:

Waltary: 8; 9; 5; 15; 8 = 37 (avg. 9)

Larralde: 10; 2; 6; 6; 9; 7= 31 (avg. 5.2)

Ospital: 8; 4; DNP; DNP; 7; 8= 27 (avg. 6.7)

Monce: NA; 2; 7; 0; 7; 7= 23 (avg. 4.6)

Etcheverry (sub for Ospital): 4

Etchegaray: DNP; 2; 1; 3= 6 (avg. 2)

Olcomendy (sub for Ospital): 3

Inchauspe: (sub for Etchegaray) NA

Group B:

Inchauspe: 8; 10; 9; 12; 6; 8; 1= 46 (avg. 6.6)

Bielle: NA; 9; 7; 6; 12; 6= 40 (avg. 8)

Olcomendy: 5; 6; 9; 4; 10= 24 (avg. 6.8)

Elgart: 12; 9; 3; 2; 5= 31 (avg. 6.2)

L. Lambert: 4; 1; 6; 8= 15 (avg. 4.75)

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Previous Championships:

2018:

Group A:

Waltary-Guichandut 40 Larralde-Iturbe 36

Full match video (Audiense Audiovisuel via FFPB)

Match article (FFPB)

"Dossier" (FFPB--.pdf format, 9p., which contains all competition match scores).

Pilota Ttiki also covered the entire competition, with match articles and condensed match videos Their coverage begins March 19. At the bottom of the article click on "precedent" and page through articles about the competition, using the "dossier" as your guide to dates of matches. When there are match videos, Pilota Ttiki links to them from the bottom of the match articles. They are also available at Pilota Ttiki Youtube (CTRL-F Championnat elite pro par equipes 2018).

Group B:

Bielle-Palomes 40 Elgart-Cubiat 22

Full match video (condensed) (Pilota Ttiki)

Match article (Pilota Ttiki)

2017: 

Group A: Larralde-Bilbao 40 Waltary-Guichandut 38

Full match video (Audiense Audiovisuel via FFPB)

Match article (FFPB)

"Dossier" (FFPB--.pdf format, 12p. ,which contains all competition match scores)

Full competition context, with final linescore graph and linescore (pelotelive.free.fr)

Group B: Inchauspe-Amulet 40 L. Lambert-Palomes 29

Competition context  (pelotelive.free.fr) (no match video available)

Match article (Pilota Ttiki)

2016: 

Group A: Waltary-Bilbao 40 Bielle-Ducassou 23

Full match video (Audiense Indivduel)

Match article (FFPB)

Competition context (pelotelive.free.fr)

Annotated linescore: (pelotelive.free.fr)

Group B: Inchauspe-Amulet 40 L. Lambert-de Ezcurra 23

Full match video (Esku Pilota)

Match article (FFPB)

Competition context: (pelotelive.free.fr)

2015:

Group A: Larralde-Bilbao 40 Etcheverry-Ducassou 10

Full match video (Bixintxo Bilbao Youtube)

Match article (FFPB)

Competition Context (pelotelive.free.fr)

Group B: Inchauspe-Saldubehere 40 Elgart-Bonetbelche 37 (no match video)

Match article (FFPB)

Competition context (pelotelive.free.fr)

2014: Larrechea-Harismendy 40 Sorhuet-Ducassou (substituting for T. Etxeto) 19 (no match video)

Match article (FFPB)

Dossier--results of all matches (FFPB)

2013: Waltary-Harismendy 40 Larrechea-X. Lambert 25 (no match video)

Match article (FFPB)

Dossier--results of all matches (FFPB)

2012: Ibarola-Harismendy 40 Bielle-Ocafrain 37 (no match video) Source: FFPB 2013 Assemblee Generale Ordinaire Exercice 2012 (P. 9)

2011: Waltary-X. Lambert 40 Ibarola-Jeannots 21 (no match video) Source: FFPB 2012 Assemblee Generale Ordinaire Exercice 2011 (P. 9) Match article (Naiz--Basque--note: Naiz has score 40-20.

2010: Ibarola-Ocafrain 40 Waltary-Etxeto 39 (no match video) Match article (Naiz--Basque)

2009: Ibarola-Ocafrain 40 Sorhuet-Etxeto 34 (no match video) Match article (Naiz--Basque)

2008: Ibarola-Ocafrain 40 Sorhuet-Ezkurra 32 (no match video) Match article (Naiz--Basque)

2007: Waltary-Etxeto 40 Sorhuet-Ocafrain 19 (no match video) Match article (Naiz--Basque). Agusti Waltary becomes the first non-native Basque to win this competition.

Since 2007: (avant-front; arriere-back)

Waltary (av) has played in 7 Finals and has won 5. 

Ibarola (av) played in 5 finals and won 4 (3 consecutive wins from 2008-2010). Ocafrain (ar) played in 5 Finals and won 3. 

Sorhuet (av) played in 4 Finals without a win. 

Harismendy (ar) won 3 consecutive Finals (2012-2014).

Larralde (av) has played in 3 Finals and won 2.

Etxeto (ar) played in 3 Finals and won 1.  

Ducassou (ar) has played in 3 Finals without a win.     

Bilbao (ar) has won 2 Finals. 

Larrechea (av) played in 2 Finals and won 1.
X. Lambert (ar) has played in 2 Finals and won 1. 

Guichandut (ar) has played in 2 Finals and won 1

Bielle (av) has played in 2 Finals without a win.

Iturbe (av), Etcheverry (av), and Jeannots (ar) have all played in 1 Final without a win