NOTE: IF YOUR DEVICE/BROWSER DOESN'T RESOLVE THE VIDEO LINKS BELOW, THE EASIEST "FIX" IS TO USE THE BASE INTERNET ADDRESS OF THE OPEN DE FRANCE CESTA PUNTA FACEBOOK PAGE.
CLICK OR CUT AND PASTE
ALL MATCH VIDEOS, IN REVERSE ORDER, ARE AT THAT ADDRESS, OR CONSULT THE "VIDEOS" LINK. FOR INDIVIDUAL POINT LINKS I HAVE PROVIDED A "TIME STAMP" WHICH SHOULD HELP IF YOU HAVE TO USE THE ABOVE MAIN ADDRESS.
The Federation Francaise de Pelota Basque has announced a new competition, the 2021 Open de France Cesta Punta, to be held at St. Jean-de-Luz (Donibane Lohizune) (1--Frontons.net) (2--Wikipedia) and Biarritz (1--George Lopez Garcia--beautiful photos) (2--Wikipedia) from February 8-March 4, 2021.
FFPB Announcement (Open de France Cesta Punta Facebook) (French)
Google English Translation
Cesta Punta French Open 2021!
Following the government's recent declarations and the lack of long-term visibility on the holding of future competitions, the Federation Française de Pelote Basque, in consultation with his national coaches Fifi (Philippe) Etcheberry and Eric Irastorza, has decided to hold a French Open. Teams drawn will consist of a professional player, paired with a player from the training centre and placed on the ministerial list of high-level athletes / hopes.
Distributed into 4 Groups of 3 teams, the games will take place in a (double Round Robin) roundtrip format, respectively on the Biarritz and St-Jean-De-Luz frontons. At the end of the 1st phase, each Group 1st place team will be qualified directly for the semi-finals to take place in St-Jean-De-Luz, before competing in the final in Biarritz.
All partidos are scheduled to be broadcast live at 18 pm (6:00 pm) and 19 pm (7:00 pm--French Time (for time conversion to your Time Zone use thetimezoneconverter.com (Paris to your city), Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on Facebook Live on the official page of the Cesta Punta Open 2021 tournament (on the main page or or on the "videos" page).These matches will also be available on demand after the live stream is over. The competition began on Monday, February 8. and will end with a Final on March 4.
Each team has one professional and one promising amateur/young professional. There will be 4 groups of 3 teams each and the League phase will be a double Round Robin (corrected, February 11, 2021) within each group. Matches will be 2 sets to 15 points and a tie breaker to 5 if necessary. Over serves (pasas) are limited to 5 per match with a second serve allowed. Each pasa after the 5th pasa is an automatic fault. Under serves are automatic faults at all times. The Tournament is scheduled for 27 matches in 4 weeks. (Corrected February 11, 2021). The teams and schedules were drawn by lot.
League scoring:
Straight set win: 4 points (Corrected February 13)
Tie breaker win: 3 points (Corrected February 14)
Tie breaker loss: 1 point
Straight set loss: 0 points
========
Philippe Etcheverry (Coach of the French National Jai Alai team) and Eric Irastorza (Coach of the Under 22 team) discuss the Tournament (French--about 2 minute 50 second video)
Tournament article: (Sud Ouest) (French)
====================
The Teams and Schedule (CPPT=Cesta Punta Pro Tour Group A or B, X=Xistera Kluba 2019)
Group 1:
Iban Etcheberry (B) (age 22)--Txabi Inza (A) (37)
Jon Tambourindeguy (A) (34)--Tom Berthon (B) (22)
Clement Garcia (B) (19)--Thibault Basque (A) (24)
Group 2:
Emeric Libois (1--X--3. Maila Aurrelariak (Front) #3) (2--FFPB 2013 Poussin--Libois is in the white shirt on the left) (age 18-21)--Yann Millat (B) (27)
Ludovic Laduche (A) (27)--Guillen Oyenart (B) (26)
Maxime Benetrix (B) (18)--David Minvielle (A) (36)
Group 3:
Kevin Ithurria (A) (29) (July 2, 2019 St. Jean de Luz full match video--Ithurria is in Red)--Theo Laborde (A) (22)
Bixente Gonzalez (A) (22)--Jerome Portet (A) (25)
Patxi Tambourindeguy (A) (38)--Hugo Ibar (B) (20)
Group 4:
Jean Olharan (A) (31)--Antton de Bettelu (B) (26)
Thomas Urrutia (B) (19)--Julien Ihitsague (B) (28)
Andoni Laloo (B) (24)--Aize Iturralde (B) (26)
Note: Some of these young prospects (links to full match videos) are covered in my Up and Comers blog post. They are:
Maxime Benetrix, Iban Etcheberry, Clement Garcia, Bixente Gonzalez, Thomas Urrutia (avants--fronts); Tom Berthon, Annton de Bettelu, Hugo Ibar, Aize Ithurralde, Theo Laborde. and Guillen Oyenart (arrieres--backs).
==========
Note: all video links are to OFCP 21 Facebook videos. At present the Tournament does not have a web site, only a Facebook site. Note: these are not commercial videos. But they are very good videos, in my opinion. The scores are called out in French and selected scores are shown on a mobile phone. In French: (sounded out, not spelled out): un-1; deu-2, twa-3; cot--4, sank--5, seese--6; set--7, wheat--8, noof (like roof)--9, dees (Chicago pronunciation)--10, ownz--11, dooze--12, trayz--13, cot-orz--14, canz--15. Hope that helps :) :)
WEEK 2
WEEK 3 (Partly done--still under construction)
==========
Complete table at the end of Week 2 (8 matches--16 total matches (Open de France Cesta Punta Facebook)
Explanations of the possibilities going into Week 3 (Open de France Cesta Punta Facebook) (French)
Google English translation (with a little "help" from me):
The final Week of League play begins Monday, February 23, before the final stages the next week. Qualifiers in Groups 3 and 4 have already been determined. Indeed Ithurria / Laborde (G3) and Olharan / de Bettelu (G4) dominated their Groups, with 3 straight set wins in 2 weeks and 12 League points. Nevertheless they should be careful keep up their intensity and play to win in the fourth and final game, in order to build confidence going into Semi-finals. The eliminated teams, Gonzalez / Portet, P. Tambourindeguy / Ibar, Laloo / Iturralde and Urrutia / Ihitsague will want to finish on a positive note.
Groups 1 and 2, which will meet the winners of Groups 3 and 4 respectively in the Semi-finals, will determine who advances next week. In Group 2, a playoff will be played between Benetrix / Minvielle and Laduche / Oyhenard to determine the winner of the Group. That is, unless Libois / Millat (already eliminated), play a spoiler role by beating Benetrix / Minvielle.
Group 1 is much tighter and all teams still have their say. Garcia / Basque, currently at 5 points, seem to have a slight advantage with 2 matches to play, while Etcheberry / Inza have 6 points with only 1 match to play. Tambourindeguy / Berthon, with 5 points and 1 match to play, are still "in the mix," but they will have to win and receive help to advance.
Team table at the end of week 2 (This is offered as a simplification of the official table).
Key:
Teams; Match Wins-Losses; Set Wins-Losses; Total points for and against; League Round Robin points
*=There are points totals that do not agree with those given in the official source data (Official Tables of OFCP). Where I could not verify the discrepancies, I stuck with the official numbers. Where I could verify the discrepancies, I incorporated the correct numbers into this table. For more, see the match reports where these discrepancies occurred (Week 1 and Week 2).
!=Have won the Group League and will advance to the Semi-finals
Group 1:
Etcheberry-Inza 2-1..4-4..85-88....6
Garcia-T. Basque 1-1..3-2..58-56....5
J. Tambourndeguy-Berthon 1-2..3-4..87-86....5
Group 2:
Benetrix-Minvielle 2-0..4-0..60-41....8
Laduche-Oyenart 2-1..4-2..83-70....8
Libois-Millat 0-3..0-6..58-90....0
Group 3:
Ithurria-Laborde! 3-0..6-0..90-58...12
Gonzalez-Portet 1-2..2-5..70-88*...3
P. Tambourindeguy-Ibar 0-2..1-4..47-61*...1
Note: Jan Belly replaced the injured Patxi Tambourindeguy for one match during Week 2
Group 4:
Olharan-de Bettelu! 3-0..6-0..90-63...12
Laloo-Iturralde 1-1..2-3..50-57*...3
Urrutia-Ihitsague 0-3..1-6..70-90*...1
+++
Cumulative Statistics:
Cumulative Total Scores (winners +) (errors -)
Week 1: +200 -231 (.464)
Week 2: +175 -245 (.417)
TOTAL: +375 -476 (.441)
-----------------
Cumulative Non-error percent (Balls in Play - errors / Balls in Play)
Week 1: (BIP - errors 2,690--Average per match 336) / (BIP 2,921--Average 365): .921
Week 2: (BIP - errors 2,269--Average per match 284) / (BIP 2,515--Average 314): .902
TOTAL: (BIP - errors 4,959--Average per match 310) / (BIP 5,436--Average 340): .912
-----------------
Cumulative Serve Intercepts immediate (winners +) (errors -)
Week 1: +34 (Average per match 4.25) -17 (Average 2.13) (.667)
Week 2: +36 (Average 4.5) -9 (Average 1.1) (.800)
Total: +70 (Average 4.4) -26 (Average 3.3) (.729)
+++
Individual Player Statistics (through Week 2: 16 matches)
Fronts (Avants)
Fronts are sorted by net score (winners - errors).
Key:
Player; # of matches played; winners +; errors -; Intercept immediate winners + errors - ; Net score; +/- Net score this week
Olharan (G4) 3..+33 -10..+10 -0..+23..+11
Ithurria (G3) 3..+40 -19...+5 -2..+21..+15
J. Tambourindeguy (G1) 3..+34 -15..+10 -4..+19...+5
Laduche (G2) 3..+33 -18..+13 -0..+15...+6
Gonzalez (G3) 3..+28 -22...+6 -3...+6...-2
P. Tambourindeguy (G3) 1..+11 -6...+5 -2...+5...--
Benetrix (G2) 2..+16 -14...+3 -0...+2...+1
Belly (G3) 1...+8 -6...+2 -0...+2...+2
Laloo (G4) 2..+15 -19...+0 -1...-4...-5
Garcia (G1) 2..+16 -22...+5 -4...-6...-6
Etcheberry (G1) 3..+20 -32...+6 -2..-12...-9
Urrutia (G4) 3..+20 -34...+4 -5..-14...-7
Libois (G2) 3..+11 -29...+3 -2..-18..-16
Backs (Arrieres)
Backs are sorted by number of errors (fewest to most)
Key:
Player; # of matches played; (winners +; errors -; Net score; +/- Net Score this week
Laborde (G3) 3....+8 -10...-2...-2
Ihitsague (G4) 3....+5 -10...-5...-1
Minvielle (G2) 2....+7 -13...-6...-2
Iturralde (G4) 2....+2 -13..-11...-2
T. Basque (G1) 2....+9 -15...-6...-6
Inza (G1) 3....+7 -16...-9...-7
Ibar (G3) 2....+5 -16..-11...-5
Millat (G2) 3....+6 -17..-11...-7
Portet (G3) 3....+7 -21..-14...-6
de Bettelu (G4) 3...+13 -27..-14...-7
Oyenart (G2) 3...+10 -30..-20...-7
Berthon (G1) 3....+8 -36..-28..-13
==========
*=Discrepancy between the official score and the real score. See individual match for more. In cases where more points were actually played than the official score, I have scored each player for all those points. Individual player scores will not add up to the total official scores.
Week 2
Week 2 Photos (Annton Ado--French Open Cesta Punta Facebook)
February 19--Day 8
Group 4
Biarritz
Match 2
Olharan-de Bettelu 2 (3-0) 12 points
Urrutia-Ihitsague 0 (0-3) 1 point
(15-11, 15-10) (30-21)
There was no match article.
Notable:
If ever there was a match in which the scoring statistics did not remotely reflect the quality of play, it was this one. There were so many highlight plays in this match that it would have taken another blog post to discuss them all. It was the best played back court defense by far of all the matches I have watched. Both Annton de Bettelu and Julien Ihitsague were superb (7 errors between them), making all the routine plays and several spectacular ones, including one by Ihitsague that was literally :) impossible (video) (43:27) (Urrutia, Ihitsague's partner serving--a 7 ball point).
Oh, and de Bettelu made a pretty nice play to put an exclamation point on the proceedings.
Set 2: O-B 15th point (video) (48:21--a 7 ball point) Olharan serves.
As far as de Bettelu's defense, take a look at the 10-5--10-6 point in Set 1 (video) (12:32--a 10 ball point). Olharan serves. The point was finished by a picada (overhand throw) big bounce by Ihitsague. I may have given Olharan a harsh error on this play. :) :)
For the first time in this Tournament, Jean Olharan had an 'ordinary' day at the office (+8 -8) which took his overall score to +33 -10. Still, he was instrumental in Set 1. He scored half his team's 6 point run that began at 3-3 and pretty much decided the outcome. He also finished the set with a very nice picada big bounce winner over Ihitsague for point 15 (video) (21:21--a 13 ball point). Olharan serves.
And 19 year old Thomas Urrutia played some audacious Cesta Punta. A little too audacious at times, as one might expect from one of his experience. However, if you watch him, you will see that he is yet one more of a cornucopia of young talent in Iparralde (North Basque Country). His numbers looked pedestrian (+7 [1 ace] -14 [2 faults]. He opened the match with a well executed 2 wall winner (video) (1:40--a 16 ball point). Olharan serves.
As for the context, O-B won their 3rd consecutive straight set match (12 League points, to clinch their Group 3 championship and join Group 4 winners Ithurria-Laborde. Group 1 and 2 championships will be determined next week.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, which features fine play by all, watch the longest point (23 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-1; 1-1; 1-2; 2-2; 2-3; 9-3; 9-5; 10-5; 10-7; 11-7; 11-9; 12-9; 12-10; 13-10; 13-11; 15-11
3 equal scores, 1 lead change, biggest run: 7 (2-3--9-3; O-B)
Set 2
1-0; 1-1; 2-1; 2-3; 4-3; 4-5; 5-5; 5-7; 12-7; 12-9; 13-9; 13-10; 15-10
6 equal scores, 4 lead changes, biggest run: 7 (5-7--12-7; O-B)
There were no requested Time Outs. There was Time out after 12-8 in Set 2 for repair of Ihitsague's cesta. After the next point, there was an injury Time Out after Ihitsague's great play.
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Olharan +8 (including 1 service ace) -8 ; de Bettelu +4 -3
Urrutia +7 (1a) -14 (including 2 service faults); Ihitsague +3 -4
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Olharan 8 (+1 -0)
Urrutia 10 (+1 -3)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Olharan 3
Urrutia 2
Total score: +22 -29 (.431)
Balls in play: 309
Non-error Percent: (BIP - errors) / BIP) (280/309): .906
BIP--points
1-4--26
5-9--14
10-14--7
15-19--3
20-24--0
25+--1
Longest point: 25 (video) (37:17): Set 2: 9-7--10-7. Olharan serves.
Average BIP per point: 6.1
Time of the match: 48:53
Time per point: 58 seconds
+++
February 19--Day 8
Group 3
Biarritz
Match 1
Ithurria-Laborde (Blue) 2 (3-0) 12 points
Gonzalez-Portet (Red) 0 (1-2) 3 points
(15-10, 15-7) (30-17)
There was no match article
Notable:
Kevin Ithurria and Theo Laborde became the first team to earn a place in the Semi-finals, with their third consecutive straight set wins. It gave them an unassailable 12 League points. They will play only one more match in the last week of League play. Once again, Ithurria led the way. After a quiet Set 1 (+1 -3), he had a terrific Set 2 (+9 -1), including 3 serve intercept immediate points of the 5 serves he intercepted. His intercept points came on an outside pass, a dejada (drop shot) and a reverse two wall, which ended the proceedings. His total score for 3 matches is +40 -19.
But as far as highlight plays of the Tournament, his partner Theo Laborde made quite possibly the save of the Tournament on a 4 ball point coming directly after the Set 2 Time Out at 9-4. It was a one hand, backhand scoop coming up the left wall with a "Joko Garbi" (video) like return (the pelota transferred catch to throw in an eyelash) to keep the point going. He then circled around in time to follow that by picking another shot off the left wall and throwing it deep, where Jerome Portet got cesta to it, but couldn't hold on.
Point 14 (video) (50:38)
The 22 year old Laborde has played as good a back court defense as anyone in the Tournament, making some tremendous plays, but also catching almost everything he gets to. He is quick up the left wall and very steady in the back corner. He has made 10 errors in 3 matches.
This has been a difficult Tournament for Bixente Gonzalez and Jerome Portet. They have played some excellent Cesta Punta but have little to show for it. Gonzalez' potential seems almost limitless. Sometimes he tries to do too much, and sometimes he makes tremendous plays. With experience will come better judgement. He goes from side to side as well as anyone in the Tournament and seems to have all the tools. He too is 22 years old. And it is hard to believe that Portet is the "old pro" at 25. His numbers in this match did not flatter, but this match had 13 points (of 47) that consumed 10 balls or more, including two over 20. The overall non-error percent (Balls in play - errors / Balls in play) was a very respectable .924. Portet had a lot to say about that.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, which features fine play by all, watch the longest point (23 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
1-0; 1-1; 2-1; 2-3; 3-3; 3-4; 4-4; 4-5; 8-5; 8-6; 9-6; 9-7; 10-7; 10-8; 11-8; 11-9; 14-9; 14-10; 15-10
5 equal scores, 2 lead changes, biggest run: 4 (4-5--8-5; I-L)
Set 2
0-1; 1-1; 1-2; 2-2; 2-3; 4-3; 4-4; 10-4; 10-5; 12-5; 12-6; 14-6; 14-7; 15-7
4 equal scores, 1 lead change, biggest run: 6 (4-4--10-4; I-L)
There was one requested Time Out. Set 2, after 9-4, by G-P.
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Ithurria +10 -4 ; Labourde +3 -4
Gonzalez +8 -10; Portet +1 -7
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Ithurria 10 (+3 -0)
Gonzalez 12 (+1 -2)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Ithurria 0
Gonzalez 3
Total score: +22 -25 (.468)
Balls in play: 320
Non-error Percent: (BIP - errors) / BIP) (304/329): .924
BIP--points
1-4--20
5-9--14
10-14--11
15-19--0
20-24--1
25+--1
Longest point: 26 (video) (8:26): Set 1: 2-3--303 (Gonzalez serving)
Average BIP per point: 4.6
Time of the match: 45:56
Time per point: 53 seconds
+++
February 18--Day 7
Group 2
Biarritz
Match 2
Laduche-Oyenart (Red) 2 (2-1) 8 points
Libois-Millat (Blue) 0 (0-3) 0 points
(15-9, 15-13) (30-22)
There was no match article
Notable:
Laduche-Oyenart eliminated Libois-Millat from championship contention with this win. In Set 1, Laduche attacked Libois' serve, turning 6 intercepts into 5 immediate points. Still, the outcome was in doubt as late as 11-9. With Libois serving after an Oyenart dropped catch, and most recently burned by a Laduche intercept point (video) (14:50) that made the score 11-8 ,Libois faulted to make the score 12-9. From there, a Laduche winner and an error by each of his opponents finished things.
Set 2 was more difficult, even though L-O raced out to an 8-1 lead. With the help of 8 La-O errors, Li-M were able to close to 14-13. But at that point, Laduche again took matters into his own hands, with yet another intercept (video) (45:46) (only his third of the set, as Libois had, for the most part, adjusted his serve) and perfect dejada (drop shot) to close the door.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, which features fine play by all, watch the longest point (23 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-2; 2-2; 2-3; 4-3; 4-4; 6-4; 6-6; 8-6; 8-7; 10-7; 10-8; 11-8; 11-9; 15-9
4 equal scores, 1 lead change, longest run: 4 (11-9--15-9; La-O)
Set 2
0-1; 8-1; 8-2; 9-2; 9-4; 10-4; 10-5; 11-5; 11-8; 12-8; 12-9; 13-9; 13-11; 14-11; 14-13; 15-13
1 equal score; 0 lead changes, biggest run: 8 (0-1--8-1; La-O)
No Time Outs were requested. There was an injury Time Out due to a minor knee injury suffered by Oyenart. Set 2, after 12-8 point.
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Laduche +14 -8 ; Oyenart +1 -8
Libois +4 -11 (including 1 service fault); Millat +2 -4
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Laduche 9 (+7 -0)
Libois 9 (+1 -0)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Laduche 1
Libois 4
Total score: +21 -31 (.404)
Balls in play: 238
Non-error Percent: (BIP - errors) / BIP) (207/238): .870
BIP--points
1-4--35
5-9--12
10-14--3
15-19--1
20+--1
Longest point: 23 (video) (35:19): Set 2: 11-6--11-7 (Libois) serving Note: 1 ball was accidentally spliced out of the point.
Average BIP per point: 4.6
Time of the match: 45:56
Time per point: 53 seconds
+++
February 18--Day 7
Group 1
Biarritz
Match 1
Etcheberry-Inza (Blue) 2 (2-1) 6 points
J. Tambourindeguy-Berthon (Red) 1 (1-2) 5 points
(13-15, 15-11, 5-4) (33-30)
There was no match article
Notable:
In a match with post season implications, Etcheberry-Inza came back from one set down, and from a 0-3 deficit in the Tie Breaker, to defeat J. Tambourindeguy-Berthon. In the first set E-I were cruising with a 13-10 lead when the "wheels came off." Three errors, two by Inza, who had played perfect defense to that point, led to 5 unanswered points to finish the set.
Set 2 opened with 3 consecutive points for the match winners. Later they expanded their lead from 5-4 to 9-4, helped by 2 Berthon dropped catches (more on him below). The teams then traded points from 9-5--13-9. At that point (video) (61:06) Jon Tambourindeguy scored the next two points, a serve intercept reverse down the left wall (earlier he had tried two wall shots after intercepts, only to see 22 year old Iban Etcheberry guess correctly and pick them off on the apron), and an outside chic chac (pelota that hits that back wall on the bounce and rebounds too low or hard to be returned). At 13-11, Etcheberry made an audacious serve intercept and beat Berthon with a long chic chac. The set ended with a Berthon dropped catch of yet another ball deep in the corner.
The tie breaker featured an exciting comeback by the winners. Down 0-3, they scored 5 of the next 6 points to win. It was exciting but not particularly aesthetic, with 8 of the 9 points coming via errors. 6 of those were dropped or tipped catches (video link to the Tie Breaker is below).
For Tom Berthon, this Tournament has been a tremendous learning experience. Berthon was +3 -16 in this match (+8 -36 overall), but that is a tribute to E-I's ability to plant Berthon in the deep left corner and several times have the pelota clip the side wall on its way down. For those who have watched backs like Eric Irastorza, Imanol Lopez, or Inza, David Minvielle, and Thibault Basque in this competition, make those type of catches look effortless, they are decidedly not. Berthon is learning, as each of the above mentioned backs also learned, how to make that catch. He is a work in progress, and right now somewhat of a victim of the strategy of finding a player's weakness and ruthlessly exploiting it. Berthon has actually played very well at times, and hopefully will use what he has learned in this Tournament as a big step on the way to the next level.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, which features fine play by all, watch the longest point (25 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-1; 1-1; 1-2; 2-2; 2-4; 3-4; 3-5; 4-5; 4-7; 6-7; 6-8; 11-8; 11-10; 13-10; 13-15
4 equal scores, 2 lead changes, biggest run: 5 (6-8--11-8;E-I; 13-10--13-15-T-B)
Set 2
3-0; 3-3; 5-3; 5-4; 9-4; 9-5; 10-5; 10-7; 11-7; 11-8; 12-8; 12-9; 13-9; 13-11; 15-11
1 equal score, 0 lead changes, biggest run: 4 (5-4--9-4; E-I
Tie Breaker
Tie Breaker full video (67:23)
0-3; 3-3; 3-4; 5-4
Tie Breaker point by point:
Point number: Server, Balls in play; Score, Player +/-; comment.
coin toss determined who served first.
1. J. Tambourindeguy; 15; 0-1; Etcheberry -; dropped catch
2. J. Tambournideguy: 3; 0-2; Etcheberry -; missed rebote (rebound)
3. J. Tambourndeguy; 5; 0-3; Berthon +; long chic chac (pelota hits back wall on the bounce and can't be returned)
4. J.Tambournideguy: 8: 1-3 J. Tambourndeguy -; tipped catch
5. Etcheberry; 5; 2-3; J. Tambourndeguy -; throws reverse too high
6. Etcheberry; 7; 3-3; Berthon -; dropped catch
7. Etcheberry; 2; 3-4; Etcheberry -; dropped catch
8. J. Tambourindeguy; 2; 4-4 J. Tambourindeguy -; dropped catch
9. Etcheberry; 9; 5-4; Berthon -; dropped catch
No Time Outs were requested.
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Etcheberry +9 -11 (including 1 service fault); Inza +1 -4
J. Tambourindeguy +12 -7; Berthon +3 -16
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Etcheberry 12 (+2 -1)
J. Tambournideguy 14 (+4 -0)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Etcheberry 0
J. Tambourindeguy 4
Total score: +25 -38 (.397)
Balls in play: 415
Non-error Percent: (BIP - errors) / BIP) (376/415): .906
BIP--points
1-4--28
5-9--23
10-14--7
15-19--2
20-24--2
25--1
Longest point: 25 (video) (48:25): Set 2: 7-4--8-4 (Etcheberrry serving)
Average BIP per point: 6.1
Time of the match: 1:16:07
Time per point: 72 seconds
+++
February 16--Day 6
Group 4
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Match 2
Olharan-de Bettelu 2 (2-0) 8 points
Laloo-Iturralde 0 (1-1) 3 points
(15-7, 15-13) (30-20)
There was no match article
Notable:
In a match between contenders for the Group 4 Semi-final slot, (Olharan-de Bettelu had 4 League points and Laloo-Iturralde 3), O-B dominated Set 1 and held off a spirited comeback by L-I in Set 2 to keep themselves firmly perched at the top of the table. If stars were given as they are in the National Hockey League, or player of the match as in cricket, Jean Olharan would surely have been picked. He was the only player with a net + score (+13 -2, which raised his total for 2 matches to +25 -2). He dominated Andoni Laloo's serve (9 service intercepts, which were immediately converted 7 times --Laloo also had 9 intercepts, but converted none of them--more on that below). Most importantly, he scored the last two points of his team's Set 2 win--one on an intercept chic chac (pelota hits the floor and back wall so low or hard that it cannot be returned), and the "finisher", a 16 ball final point--another chic chac.
Point 14 (video) (47:18) (Laloo serving)
Point 15 (video) (48:20) (Laloo serving)
Laloo had a very frustrating "day at the office." His intercept numbers do not reflect how well he played those balls. In many cases he forced Antton de Bettelu into very difficult saves in the back corner, saves that de Bettelu got cesta to but couldn't hold on. I scored them as errors, but they were "forced" errors. Laloo also ran miles for an Olharan short dejada (drop shot) and actually got to it, but dropped it. His frustration was quite audible.
de Bettelu, in spite of his struggles, threw the best shot of the match, and perhaps the Tournament so far. After being tormented by Laloo time after time he got his "revenge" late in Set 1. He caught two deep left throws and then another racing to his right. Then he threw a perfect two wall winner from behind the 12 line. He got a big High Cesta salute from Olharan. And a small one from his back court opponent Aize Iturralde as well.
14th point of Set 1 (video) (20:24) (Olharan serving)
Iturralde quietly played an excellent defensive game. His steadiness was the reason for some of the 12 points that consumed more than 10 balls in play (including six that consumed over 15 and two over 20). +1 -3 might not look impressive, but in the context of the young (and even some of the veteran) back statistics those numbers were sparkling.
The game was played at a rapid pace. One of the reasons Olharan is so much fun to watch is that he does not waste time. When he scores he almost always runs from his front court position to serve (not a small amount of territory in this modality). And he doesn't hesitate to start the next point. It is a little thing, but it keeps the match moving. This match had over 300 balls in play but was finished in less than an 50 minutes.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, which features fine play by all, watch the longest point (23 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-1; 3-1; 3-2; 5-2; 5-4; 9-4; 9-5; 10-5; 10-6; 12-6; 12-7; 15-7
1 equal score, 1 lead change, biggest run: 4 (5-4--9-4--O-B)
Set 2
2-0; 2-1; 5-1; 5-3; 7-3; 7-4; 8-4; 8-5; 11-5; 11-9; 12-9; 12-10; 12-11; 13-11; 13-12; 14-12; 14-13; 15-13
0 equal scores, 0 lead changes, biggest run: 3 (2-1--5-1; 8-5--11-5--both O-B)
There were no Time Outs requested.
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Olharan +13 -2; de Bettelu +4 -12
Laloo +5 -10 (including 2 service faults); Iturralde +1 -3
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Olharan 9 (+7 -0)
Laloo 9 (+0 -0)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Olharan 1
Laloo 1
Total score: +23 -27 (.460)
Balls in play: 320
Non-error Percent: (BIP - errors) / BIP) (293/320): .916
BIP--points
1-4--22
5-9--16
10-14--6
15-19--2
20+--2
Longest point: 23 (video) (26:47): Set 2: 3-1--4-1 (Olharan serving)
Average BIP per point: 6.4
Time of the match: 49:34
Time per point: 59 seconds
+++
February 16--Day 6
Group 3
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Match 1
Note: Yon Belly (video) (2018 FFPB Grand Semaine [Week] Grand Chistera National A Final--Belly is the mid-fielder in blue.) was brought in as a substitute replacing Patxi Tambourindeguy in this match. Grand Chistera is "outdoor" Cesta Punta played 3 v 3 against a single wall on an 80 meter court--with no crash helmets. This match also featured Andoni Laloo (white front) and Thibault Basque (white back), who are both in this Tournament. Tambourindeguy suffered an adductor (inner thigh) muscle injury in his match last Friday (see Week 1 Post).
English Google Translation
Following an injury to the adductor during a rebote (rebound shot) during his Friday night game, Patxi Tambourindeguy is forced to declare for tonight's game against Kévin Ithurria and Théo Laborde. He will be replaced by Yon Belly for the 18 pm game
Ithurria-Laborde (Red) 2 (2-0) 8 points
Belly (substituting for P. Tambourindeguy)-Ibar (Blue) 0 (0-2) 1 point
(15-11, 15-8) (30-19)
There was no match article
Notable:
Tuesday's "double header" began with the veterans in the front for the first time this week. It also marked a definite change in the quality of play. Kevin Ithurria dominated play (+16 -7 to take his score in 2 matches to +30 -15). Yon Belly (Scroll down 4 rows and he is on the right), a long time veteran of Cesta Punta and Grand Chistera who has been winning FFPB Tournaments
since at least 2012, also played well. One thing that I noticed was that they seemed to naturally cover a lot more territory than any of the four young fronts from yesterday. Theo Laborde quietly played an excellent match (+2 -3--6 errors in 2 matches). Hugo Ibar once again had numbers (+1 -6) that did not reflect how well he played, in my opinion.
The first set was a back and forth affair with three 4 point runs, the last by the winners (8-9--12-9--helped by 3 Ibar errors). From there Ithurria took control, scoring his team's last 3 points (video) (28:18--Belly serving) with a chic chac (ball that hits the floor and back wall so low or hard that it can't be returned), chula (same thing except the ball hits the back wall on the fly) and dejada (short drop shot). The second set was close for the first half (8-7), but the winners dominated at "crunch time" with 7-1 run at the finish. There was only one error in that part of the match. (Ibar). At the end, Ithurria was +4 -0 (video) (55:58).
(a long chic chac ending a 17 ball point, a cortada [sidearm "fastball"] from the apron, and two 2 wall winners). The match finished with 6 consecutive winners.
The win put Ithurria-Laborde in the "drivers seat" at the top their group. P. Tambourindeguy (Belly)-Ibar now have little chance of advancing.
If you want to see a nice microcosm of the match, watch the longest point (31 balls in play), linked to below.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-1; 3-1; 3-5; 7-5; 7-6; 8-6; 8-9; 9-9 (16 Balls in Play) (Time Out--I-L); 12-9; 12-10; 14-10; 14-11; 15-11
5 equal scores, 5 lead changes, biggest run: 4: (3-1--3-5--B-Ib) (3-5--7-5 and 8-9--12-9--It-L)
Set 2
1-0; 1-2; 2-2; 2-3; 4-3; 4-4 (Technical Time Out--about 3 minutes, for Ithurria cesta repair or replacement after a Belly rocket two wall winner damaged it on the apron); 6-4; 6-6; 8-6; 8-7; 12-7; 12-8; 15-8
5 equal scores, 1 lead change, biggest run: 4: (8-7--12-7--It-L)
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Ithurria +16 -7; Laborde +2 -3
Belly +8 -6; Ibar +1 -6
Serve intercepts; immediate kills/errors (+/-)
Ithurria 4 (+1 -1)
Belly 9 (+2 -0)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Ithurria 0
Belly 2
Total score: +27 -22 (.551)
Balls in play: 314
Non-error percent (BIP - errors) / BIP) (292/314): .930
BIP--Points
0-4--26
5-9--12
10-14--7
15-19--2
20-24--1
25-29--0
30+--1
Longest point: 31: 1st set--3-4--3-5--Belly serves (video)--(9:03)
Average BIP per point: 6.0
Time of the match 1:01:43 (total match time only, playing time was less)
Average time per point: 77 seconds.
+++
February 15--Day 5
Group 2
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Match 2
Benetrix-Minvielle (Blue) 2 (2-0) 8 points
Libois-Millat (Red) 0 (0-2) 0 points
(15-9*, 15-9*) (30-18)*
Match article (Pilota Ttiki)
Notable:
The final scores of both sets were incorrect, as far as I can tell. The first was actually 16-9, and the second was 16-10, according to my scoring. I scored each set twice. I could be wrong about this of course, and I would urge you to take a close look at each set. If I am correct, it is troubling. Even though these errors (there was one last week also) did not change the outcomes, it is easy to imagine scenarios where an incorrect score could lead to the wrong team winning the match.The only reason I know of for a Cesta Punta point being replayed is obstruction (when one player interferes with another player during a point). When that happens, it is called "berriz" (play over) and, in my experience always called out or noted on screen or by commentators. You will not hear that word from Judge-Arbitres (referees) or commentators during this match.
It might be a good idea for the announcer to keep a running score on a piece of paper (that is what I do), and to have Judge-Arbitres also keep score, as they do in Main Nue, another of the major modalities of Basque Pelota in Iparralde (North Basque Country). Perhaps a small mechanical indicator or counter of some sort could be used, as senior Main Nue Judge-Arbitre Chrstophe Sorhondo (Blog post) does during major matches.
As for the match, Maxime Benetrix and David Minvielle dominated both sets over Emeric Libois and Yann Millat. In the first set they built an early 8-3 lead and coasted home from there. The second set was tied at 4-4 when they went on a 6-1 run that decided the issue. Errors played a large role in the proceedings (8 consecutive in the first set), but there was also some excellent play. Memorable moments were two fantastic two wall winners by Minvielle in the second set, one behind the 11 line and the second behind the 12---
Behind the 11 line (video) (30:08)
Behind the 12 line (video) (49:44)
and the play of Emeric Libois at the end of the match. Libois has had a "baptism of fire" in this Tournament (+7 -18), learning the hard way what he can and can't do at this level, but he seemed to throw caution to the wind toward the end of the match with 3 beautiful two wall winners, two on on serve intercepts, and the other in the rally.
1st serve intercept (video) (44:42)
2nd serve intercept (video) (47:50)
In the rally (video) (46:15)
The loss pretty much ended the post season aspirations of L-M. Benetrix-Minvielle are now 2-0, perched atop Group 2 with 8 League points.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
2-0; 2-1; 3-1; 3-2; 7-2; 7-3; 8-3; 8-4; 9-4; 9-5; 11-5; 11-7; 12-7; 12-8; 13-8; 13-9; 16-9
0 equal scores, 0 lead changes, biggest run: 4: (3-2--7-2) B-Min
Set 2
1-0; 1-2; 2-2; 2-4; 7-4; 7-5; 10-5; 10-6; 11-6; 11-7; 12-7; 12-9; 13-9; 13-10; 16-10
3 equal scores, 2 lead changes, biggest run: 5: (2-4--7-4) B-Min
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Benetrix +8 -7 (including 1 service fault); Minvielle +5 -7
Libois +4 -13; Millat +1 -6
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Benetrix 8 (+1 -0)
Libois 10 (+2 -0)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Benetrix 3
Libois 3
Total score: +18 -33 (.353)
Balls in play: 280
Non-error percent (BIP - errors / BIP) (247/280): .882
BIP--Points
0-4--27
5-9--14
10-14--8
15-19--1
20+--1
Longest point: 20 (video); (13:10) (8-4--9-4) (called as 7-4--8-4)
Average BIP per point: 5.5
Time of the match 50:54 (total match time only, playing time was less)
Average time per point: 60 seconds.
There was 1 Time Out called by L-Mil in Set 1: after 8-3 (called 7-3): They also called one in Set 2, after 7-5 (called 6-4).
+++
February 15--Day 5
Group 1
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Match 1
Etcheberry-Inza (Red) 2 (1-1) 3 points
Garcia-T. Basque (Green) 1 (1-1) 5 points
(9-15, 15-11, 5-2) (29-28)
Match article (Pilota Ttiki)
Notable:
The first two sets were rather forgettable, as all 4 players had "bad days at the office." The total match score for these two sets was +13 -37 (.260). None of the players had a net + score. In addition the first two sets had 32 points (out of 50) that consumed less than 5 balls in play, and 43 that consumed less than 10. This indicates that the plethora of errors was made in the context of relatively short points. The non-error percentage for the first two sets was 210 (balls in play - errors) / 245 (balls in play) (.857). Anything less than 90 percent indicates a match that, in my opinion, is technically poor. There were long streaks of points decided by errors (12 in the first set--2-5--6-12, and 10 in the second--9-8--15-11).
And so, when the two teams staggered out to play the Tie Breaker...they were two completely different teams. The 7 point 63 ball Tie Breaker had only 3 errors and a non-error percentage of .952. All four players picked up their game to a somewhat remarkable level, given what had come before. 3 of the 8 points in the match that consumed more than 10 balls in play came in the Tie Breaker. 19 year old Clement Garcia, who had struggled mightily in the first two sets (+6 -11 with 4 Pasas [1st serve over serves that allow a second serve] and a service fault), opened the Tie Breaker with a daring intercept of an Iban Etcheberry serve that produced a dazzling rocket Chula that smashed into the back wall and handcuffed his opponents. After 3 errors put the score at 3-1 Etcheberry-Inza, the match ended with 3 top notch winners, outside passes by Etcheberry and Txabi Inza sandwiched around a left wall pass by Thibault Basque. It was a little less than 9 minutes of spectacular Cesta Punta that seemed to come "out of the blue." But part of the whole point of this Tournament is to throw the youngsters "into the fire" and see how they respond.
It was to be expected that the two veteran backs would "come to play" and lift their games, but the two young fronts did also. And that, perhaps, was the true value of this match.
Etcheberry-Inza needed this win very badly, as two consecutive opening losses would have probably doomed their post season chances. But winning, and coming back from 0-1 down to win, put their tournament in a very different light. With the loss, Garcia-T. Basque still received one point which, added to their straight set win last week, left them with 5 points. So everyone had something to feel good about, in spite of a match that started out as a test of all four players' confidence.
In spite of some of the ragged play that accompanied this match, the best point of the match was as good as any seen in the Tournament so far.
Set 2: 8-7--8-8 (video) (36:57), a 28 ball point won by a T. Basque rocket chic chac (pelota that hits the back wall on a bounce and cannot be returned) that came all the way back to the 7 line so close to the wall that Garcia couldn't handle the rebote (rebound). The point shows the poise and skill of the two veteran back court players especially well. The two young fronts (age 22 and 19) also played this point very well.
Condensed full linescores (match winners always listed first)
Set 1
0-2; 1-2; 1-5; 2-5; 2-7; 3-7; 3-8; 4-8; 4-10; 6-10; 6-14; 9-14; 9-15
0 equal scores, 0 lead changes, biggest run: 4: (6-10--6-14) G-B
Set 2
1-0; 1-1; 2-1; 2-2; 5-2; 5-4; 6-4; 6-5; 7-5; 7-7; 8-7; 8-8; 9-8; 9-9; 11-9; 11-10; 12-10; 12-11; 15-11
5 equal scores, 0 lead changes, biggest run: 3, twice (2-2--5-2, 12-10--15-10) both by E-I
Tie Breaker
Tie Breaker full video (51:18)
0-1; 4-1; 4-2; 5-2
Tie Breaker point by point:
Point number: Server, Balls in play; Score, Player +/-; comment.
coin toss determined who served first.
1. Etcheberry; 2; 0-1; Garcia +; intercepts the serve and scores with a chula (pelota that hits the back wall on the fly and cannot be returned)
2. Garcia; 22; 1-1; Garcia -; throws high into the overhead screen
3. Etcheberry; 7; 2-1; T. Basque -; dropped catch
4. Etcheberry; 13: 3-1; Garcia -; cortada (sidearm "fast ball") too low
5. Etcheberry; 11; 4-1; Etcheberry +; outside pass
6. Etcheberry; 2; 4-2; T. Basque +; left pass
7. Garcia; 6; 5-2; Inza +; outside pass
Full match scoring (mine, yours may be different)
Etcheberry +5 -12 (including 1 service fault); Inza +2 -6
Garcia +7 -13 (1f); T. Basque +3 -9
Serve intercepts; immediate winners/errors (+/-)
Etcheberry 5 (+2 -0)
Garcia 8 (+3 -1)
Pasas (over serves, 2nd serve allowed)
Etcheberry 2
Garcia 5
Total score: +17 -40 (.298)
Balls in play: 310
Non-error percent (BIP - errors / BIP) (270/310): .871
BIP--Points
0-4--34
5-9--13
10-14--8
15-19--0
20-24--1
25-29--1
Longest point: 28: Set 2: 8-11--8-12 (see video above)
Average BIP per point: 5.4
Time of the match 1:00:15 (total match time only, playing time was less)
Average time per point: 63 seconds.
There was only 1 Time Out called: Set 2, after the 8-8 point.
