Basque pelota blog in english – Dos paredes

The final of the Torneo Lekeitio will be between Bengoetxea VI and Apraiz, and Martinez de Irujo and Barriola. Apologies for the lack of report on the second semi final; I was unable to watch it and have been very pushed for time this weekend! Suffice it to say that Irujo and Barriola totally outclassed Xala and Begino, winning 22-7 to set up today’s clash against the Asegarce pair. Bengoetxea plays in his fourth festival final of the summer, having already won at San Fermin, Zarautz and San Sebastian. He is supported here by the less experienced Apraiz who played a storming semi final, and appears to be gaining in confidence on the highest stage. Barriola is on a monumental roll, having one sixteen matches on the bounce since returning from injury. Manomanista king Irujo, who joins him here, has been in variable form this summer, but will surely come out all guns blazing here. Much will depend on the duel between Barriola and Apraiz; if Apraiz can replicate the cool he has shown in his past two matches, this is anybody’s game.

Sunday 5th September, Lekeitio

17:00 (CEST) OLAIZOLA I – IBAI ZABALA v GONZALEZ – EULATE

18:10 (CEST) MARTINEZ DE IRUJO – BARRIOLA v BENGOETXEA VI - APRAIZ Torneo Lekeitio Final

http://www.eitb.com/etb-sat/en-directo

Irujo and Barriola are partners today

Photo from Gara, by Juanan Ruiz

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Friday 27th August, Donostia-San Sebastian

BENGOETXEA VI – BARRIOLA beat XALA – APRAIZ 14-11 (Xala ret.)

It was an anti-climactic end to a match which had everything. With the score on 10-12 in favour of Bengoetxea and Barriola, the latter raced forward to retrieve a txoko from Xala. He got there, and dived, but the ball hit him on the rebound, giving the point to the opposing pair. Such was the drama of the point, in much the same vein as every point in this absorbing encounter, that one could have been forgiven for missing the stumble of Xala as his knee went sideways in the execution of his winner. As he sat, slumped against the wall, a resigned shrug told the story. He was hurt, and departed for treatment. He returned to the fray, briefly, but to continue was not worth the risk of lasting damage. Two points later it was all up for the pair in red, and thus came to an end a game, which although only partially played, was as long as a complete match of average length. Nobody can say what might have been.

The match started with a whitewash by Bengoextea and Barriola, the men from the same small Navarrese town of Leitza. Bengoetxea was supreme, looking every inch the player who took the 2008 Manomanista by storm. The first point, which ended in the first of his nine winners, was a tactical tour de force. Apraiz took took it on and attacked his opposite number, but Bengoetxea wrested the initiative before whipping the ball into space in the wide court. Xala almost nailed the second point, but pushed his attempted winner wide, and the Asegarce forward continued his masterclass, with five winners in the next five points, showing the immense range of his skill. In the point which took the score to 3-0, he dealt Apraiz a merciless working over before barreling one above his head. The next was won with a drop before he flummoxed Apraiz again. A service winner stretched the lead to six, and a textbook long serve-gantxo-drop routine took it to seven. Barriola was faultless as Bengoetxea’s foil, and there was nothing their opponents could do.

However, the tide turned. Bengoetxea, who had been stretching throughout the game, left the fronton at 7-0 for attention, and when he returned, he found a changed opposition. The reds gained their first point from Bengoetxea’s first mistake, and the second came from a Xala serve. The leaders continued to score in ones and twos, but the real surge by Xala and Apraiz came at 4-10, upon which they added five points without reply. Notable here was the reverse in the fortunes of the defenders. Hitherto, Barriola had been irreproachable, but Apraiz was not intimidated by his reputation and seized the initiative. Barriola’s dip started when he got utterly mixed up close in to the wall and pushed one wide. He withstood some searing pressure in the point which followed, but subsequently cracked under Apraiz’s salvo, going short and low in consecutive points. Xala, too, moved up a gear, tricking Bengoetxea superbly at 2-8, and firing merciless winners at 6-10 and 8-10. With the reds only one point in arrears, it was anybody’s game.

Bengoetxea and Barriola relieved some pressure, restoring their two point lead after the former ended a full scale war of a point with a crosscourt winner, but threw it away immediately with miscued sitter of a txoko. The pattern repeated itself as Bengoetxea volleyed cleverly into space, before the txoko winner in which Xala’s knee gave out. After the treatment break, Apraiz struck low before Benogetxea grabbed a three point lead with an easy winner into the corner, but Xala appeared immobile and dejected; he could not go on.

There is no way of knowing what could have happened in the remainder of this extraordinary match, so full of gargantuan points, stunning defence and virtuosic winners. A rout had seemed on the cards, but Xala and Apraiz showed an iron will to fight, and stormed back to within an inch of the lead. When the accident happened, Bengoetxea and Barriola appeared to be in the process of regaining their calm, and one has to concede that the best pair in the tournament took the spoils. Their semi final performance was a display for the ages, and in the early part of this game they showed that their level there was no fluke. Barriola took home the trophy for the player of the tournament, and save for his momentary slip in the transitional part of the final, he was near faultless. Bengoetxea too was in a higher league, full of venom, attack and guile. The fans can only hope that they will be afforded the chance to renew their partnership very soon.

Xala was diagnosed with a sprained right knee in the aftermath of the match, and will undergo further medical tests tomorrow to determine the extent of the injury.

Scoring sequence: 0-7,2-7,2-8,3-8,3-9,4-9,4-10,9-10,9-11,10-11,10-12,11-12,11-14

Winners/errors: Bengoetxea VI 9/3, Xala 4/3, Barriola 0/3, Apraiz 1/2

Total match time: 1:02.03

Playing time: 22.45

Balls played: 471

Oinatz and Abel, victors in San Sebastian

Image from Gara, by Jon Urbe

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Monday 23rd August, San Sebastian

BENGOETXEA VI – BARRIOLA beat TITIN III – ZUBIETA 22-5

Torneo Ciudad de San Sebastian Semi Final

This was an extraordinary match, in the main for the wrong reasons. It would be unfair to overlook the stunning play of Oinatz Bengoetxea and Abel Barriola, but inevitably the post mortem centres around Titin and Zubieta, both supposedly in excellent form, and their utter implosion. On the face of it, they should have been the better oiled partnership, having played together on many occasions. Bengoetxea and Barriola come from the same town, Leitza, in north western Navarre, and know each other well, but are unaccustomed to playing as colleagues. In the Manomanista final of 2008, which will go down in the civic annals and in local legend, Leitza ruled the sport, with Bengoetxea defeating Barriola to take the greatest prize of all, but the prospect of seeing the towns most famous sons in tandem was almost as enticing. Their collective virtuosity and their obvious empathy on Monday night makes one wish such a meeting could occur more regularly. They put Titin and Zubieta in the shade.

The game promised much, and the early exchanges did not disappoint. It was the eventual losers who drew first blood, when Barriola could not return a stunning long ball from Pairs Champion Zubieta. The second point was staggering in its variety, and was won by Barriola who came forward to whip the ball wide, having survived intense pressure. Titin took the lead again with an airez, before allowing his rivals to draw level once more at 2-2 with a low txoko attempt. All seemed set for an epic tussle. However, for Titin and Zubieta, the wheels fell off in spectacular fashion. They managed only three more points in the match, two of which came from the errors of their opponents, and the third from Titin’s second and last winner in the game.

The statistics tell the story of the gulf between the forwards. Bengoextea was on fire, striking nine winners to only one error. Five of his winners came from serves, a part of his game which clicked excellently well. He was striking in his speed and verve, never resting, always scrapping, and made space for his winning shots with ease and grace. In contrast, Titin looked leaden footed. He possessed none of the spark of his recent matches, and appeared stiff and immobile alongside Bengoetxea’s dexterity. He barely looked in a position to go for the kill, and when he attempted it he was found wanting. He provided no kind of platform for Zubieta, who also looked off colour. He showed his class in the course of many of the rallies, but missed the spot on four occasions, trying vainly to create some pressure on his opposite number, the irrepressible Abel Barriola. The great defender continues to go from strength to strength since returning from his enforced break. Here he was once again magisterial, striking cleanly and elegantly from all positions. Not content to simply field the long ball, he often came forward to mix it in the front half of the court, notably pulling off an astonishing dos paredes on 10-3 which sent Titin into a rage. It is telling that Titin’s opposing defender scored more winners, four, than he did.

Titin and Zubieta had a day to forget but will come back and prove their class soon enough. For them, it was a case of bad turning to worse, the one affected by the woes of the other. The game started well for them, and they appeared increasingly in shock that things could have taken such a dramatically bad swing, as did the gathered crowds. Bengoextea and Barriola in contrast look like an irresistible partnership, belying their inexperience as a couple. They will represent a tough obstacle in the final as they aim once more to make Leitza proud.

Scoring sequence: 1-0, 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, 2-6, 3-6, 3-7, 3-11, 4-11, 4-12, 4-17, 5-17, 5-22.

Winners/errors: Bengoetxea VI 9/1, Titin III 2/4, Barriola 5/2, Zubieta 0/4.

Balls played: 354

Total match time: 40.28

Playing time: 16.42

Oinatz and Abel united

Image from Diario de Navarra by JA Goni

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Monday 9th August, Vitoria-Gasteiz

XALA – BARRIOLA beat TITIN III – ZUBIETA 22-14

Virgen Blanca Final

When the great defender Abel Barriola tore the cruciate ligament in his right knee in April 2009, some doubted that he would ever again reach the heights which saw him finish 2008 as the number one pelotari in the Basque Country. Since his return to competition five months ago, the man from Leitza has struggled for form and rhythm, showing flashes of the old Barriola in the Manomanista but rarely threatening. However, in the past week at Ogueta, he has gone a long way to silencing the doubters. It takes two to win a doubles title, but in Monday’s Virgen Blanca final, Barriola was the towering master, the difference between the sides, and the biggest winner.

In the way of Barriola and his partner, one half of the reigning Pairs Champion couple Xala, stood Titin, and Xala’s erstwhile partner Zubieta. In professional pelota pairs change competition by competition, but such was the bond between Xala and Zubieta in their victorious championship campaign that it seemed almost perverse to see them on opposing sides. Titin and Zubieta reached the final here by virtue of an excellent win over Irujo and Beloki, and they started well enough this time round. The first two points went against them, but Titin restored parity with a gantxo and a txoko, suggestive of a continuation of his rampant semi final form. An error from Barriola gave them a 3-2 lead and all seemed right in their world, but this was to be the only time they found themselves ahead in the match.

All four players committed more errors than they hit winners but the scale of each error count told its own story. Barriola, with a winner and only two errors, became the first defender in the history of the Virgen Blanca tournament to take home the prize awarded to the best player of the week. He was solid as a rock, returning everything his opponents threw his way and also played with his head, always in the right place at the right time whether awaiting the long ball or covering for Xala at the front. His opposite number, Aitor Zubieta, did not have such a stellar night, although his six errors obscure the quality of much of his play. He was frequently in command mid rally and suffered from the lack of spark shown by Titin, who was a shadow of the dynamic presence we saw in the semi final. Zubieta’s slips more often than not came as he tried in vain to push the margins, to try anything to pressure Barriola. Xala must thank his lucky stars for his defender, for like Titin he leaked mistakes. He was at times sparkling, and showed his power to dominate with icy calm, but eight errors, encompassing a worrying tendency to prod the ball low, was more than he can have countenanced.

The final failed to live up to the hype which preceded it, induced the quality of the earlier matches. The 1500 spectators at Ogueta, which has seen excellent ticket sales throughout the festival, may well have felt short changed. They did however witness the crowning of worthy winners, and the resurgence of one Abel Barriola, something in which all pelota fans can rejoice.

Scoring sequence: 0-2, 2-2, 3-2, 3-3, 3-7, 4-7, 5-7, 5-9, 7-9, 7-13, 11-13, 11-20, 14-20, 14-22.

Winners/Errors: Titin 3/6, Zubieta 1/6, Xala 7/8, Barriola 2/2

On Sunday, the final of the Torneo Manomanista Promoción La Blanca was contested between Lemuno and Merino II. The latter ran out the winner by 22 points to 16.

Barriola: player of the tournament

Image from Gara

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Saturday 7th August, Vitoria-Gasteiz

XALA – BARRIOLA beat MARTINEZ DE IRUJO – BELOKI 22-16

Torneo Virgen Blanca

Yves Salaberry and Abel Barriola pulled a performance from the top drawer to make the final of the Torneo Virgen Blanca at Ogueta last night. They were subjected to a tough, 536 ball examination by Juan Martinez de Irujo and Ruben Beloki but after the first point were never headed, and came through by a margin of six. Their mastery lay in their greater consistency, especially in the defending stakes, where Beloki, usually an impenetrable wall, had a game to forget.

It was easy to assume that this match would be won in the forward battle. It pitted against each other the 2010 Manomanista finalists, with runner-up Xala likely out for revenge on the sport’s greatest player Irujo. The two matched each other stroke for stroke for much of the match, and dominated the early exchanges to the extent that one almost overlooked the role of the backs, who were both excellent in the opening salvo. Irujo took the first point of the game with a txoko which was almost nonchalant, only to be emulated by Xala who showed that two could play that particular game. Two more imperious winners from the Lekuine native, and an error from Irujo, and the blue pair had established a 4-1 lead. The two traded spectacular gantxos on 2-5 and 2-6, but as the score line suggested, it was Xala’s pair who were in the ascendant.

It soon became evident that although the tussle in attack was an enthralling one, this match may be decided by the relative fortunes of Beloki and Barriola. When Xala got himself in a twist to allow Irujo and Beloki to tie at 6-6, a golden opportunity presented itself for them to seize the upper hand, but perhaps in an effort to push Barriola back, Beloki hit carelessly high. It was the first of four such errors by the man from Burlada and his lapses were to prove decisive. He made six errors in the game to Barriola’s one, which in such a close fight made the difference. In addition to his bone fide errors which cost points directly, many of his shots within rallies were lacking, giving Xala an all too comfortable platform from which to attack. In contrast, Barriola, roaring back into form after his injury hiatus, was outstanding, giving away his first point only when the score stood at 14-11.

As the match wore on, there was a sense that Irujo’s play became somewhat dragged down by Beloki’s. Until the last third of the match his error count had been low, but lax shots crept in as he committed four errors in the final ten rallies. In contrast, Xala soldiered on. A falta on 15-12 blotted his copybook to a degree, and he twice made mistakes while going for the kill, but by that time the game was almost up. The game ended, rather fittingly, with a miscue from Beloki.

So, an enthralling final is in prospect, with Xala and Barriola taking on Titin and Zubieta on Monday. Both pairs have looked in fine form this week, and the battles between the both the forwards and backs promise to be closely matched. It is hard to call a winner, but if Xala can replicate last night’s standards, he and Barriola could be hard to stop.

Scoring sequence: 1-0, 1-1, 1-4, 2-4, 2-6, 3-6, 6-6, 6-7, 6-8, 7-8, 7-10, 9-10, 9-11, 9-12, 10-12, 10-14, 12-14, 12-15, 13-15, 13-16, 14-16, 14-20, 15-20, 15-21, 16-21, 16-22.

Winners: Xala 9, Martinez de Irujo 10, Barriola 1, Beloki 1

Errors: Xala 4, Martinez de Irujo 6, Barriola 1, Beloki 6

Abel Barriola: consistency personified

Image from: Noticias de Alava

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22:25 (CEST) TITIN III – PASCUAL v BENGOETXEA VI – PATXI RUIZ

Tonight sees not only the culmination of the world famous San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, but the climax of the prestigious pelota tournament which accompanies it. Labrit, the city’s historic fronton, will be packed with fans and revellers alike tonight, as Augusto Ibanez (Titin III) and Inigo Pascual take on Oinatz Bengoetxea and Patxi Ruiz for the prize, in one of the biggest tournaments outside of the three major championships.

Titin came through Group B playing alongside Abel Barriola, but he is forced to miss the final with sore hands. Pascual should prove an able substitute, though that will be no comfort to Barriola, who appears to be regaining his form after his long injury layoff. They reached the final thanks to a tense 22-21 win over Martinez de Irujo and Beroiz on Monday, in sweltering conditions. They had previously defeated Saralegi and Apraiz 22-9.

Bengoetxea and Patxi Ruiz experienced a tough ride through Group A, and showed great character to remain unbeaten. Both their matches, first against Berasaluze VIII and Begino (22-20) and then against Gonzalez and Zubieta (22-19) were tight.

Logic suggests Titin and Pascual will be favourites. Despite coming in at short notice, Pascual is a regular partner of Titin so there will be no problems of coordination. Titin is clearly in form, and few have beaten Irujo in recent months. However, although Bengoetxea has not been at his best this year, this run suggests a growing confidence, and Titin will have to overcome his never say die attitude and scrapping defence to reach 22. A grand occasion is on the cards.

To watch, visit http://www.eitb.com/television/etb-sat

Inigo Pascual steps in for Barriola at San Fermin

Image from: Diario de Navarra

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Saturday 15th May, Pamplona

OLAIZOLA I beat BARRIOLA 22-18

Manomanista Group A

In a game of high intensity and great excitement at the cathedral of Labrit, Asier Olaizola overcame the staunch challenge of Abel Barriola to all but claim a place in the semi finals of the 2010 Manomanista. Had he lost here, he would have been forced to wait for the result of the match on Sunday between Martinez de Irujo and Bengoetxea VI, where a win for Bengoetxea would mean elimination for the Goizuetarra. As it was, this sterling victory meant qualification, unless Bengoetxea could beat Irujo by more than eight points.

The game was one of sporadic quality. Both pelotaris displayed stunning skill at times but both also lapsed. However, the real quality of the evening came in the form of its scintillating atmosphere, stirred up by the knowledge of all concerned that this encounter truly mattered. The large crowd roared and rippled like the sea. At first, Olaizola rode the crest of the wave, moving to a 4-1 lead with some authority. It was not to last though, as a lapse in his early intensity opened the door for Barriola, who at 9-4 to the good found himself in a position of some strength. He was able to control points, pushing Olaizola back relentlessly, and it appeared that his pre-injury verve had returned, albeit too late for him to qualify. However, Olaizola took his chance to regain the serve with both hands, and astonished all concerned with a run of fifteen straight points. He served excellently, and displayed the killer punch that Barriola increasingly lacked, on his way to registering a total of thirteen clean winners in the match. It is to be expected that after nearly a year off with a serious knee injury, Barriola will take time to return to the boil, but he looked slow here and lacked spark. Sharp movement is obviously not yet easy. However, having arrived a mere three points short of the prize, Olaizola stuttered, and his errors allowed Barriola back into the game. In his last match, against Irujo, Olaizola had allowed a massive lead to slip; surely it would not happen again? Thankfully for him, he regained his composure, not without some necessary risk taking, and moved with relief from 20-18 to 22-18.

The relief was palpable on the face of the older Olaizola; he had done all he could, and could return home to await his fate in the knowledge that he had left everything on the fronton. Barriola was below his very high par, as he has been all tournament, and one can only hope that the real pelotari will step forward very soon. The loser was, as ever, gracious in defeat, and congratulated Olaizola with warmth. As he retired to leave his brother in the limelight, botillero Aimar granted Asier a firm pat on the back; job well done.

Scoring sequence: 2-0, 2-1, 4-1, 4-9, 19-9, 19-13, 20-13, 20-18, 22-18

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Sunday 2^nd May, Eibar

BENGOETXEA VI beat BARRIOLA 22-13

Manomanista Group A

Leitza, a town of close to 3000 inhabitants in north western Navarre, is blessed with two of the top pelotaris of their generation. This match in Eibar was a repeat of the 2008 Manomanista final which saw Abel Barriola play Oinatz Bengoetxea in an encounter which divided the population in good natured rivalry. On that occasion Benogetxea took the txapela comfortably by 22 points to 11, confirming the reputation of Barriola as the frequent nearly-man of modern pelota. The 31 year old won the Manomanista in 2002, beating Ruben Beloki to take the crown, but he has since lost the final on two occasions as well as the Cuatro y Medio final four times. It was imperative that he beat Bengoetxea on Sunday in order to keep his 2010 hopes alive but again, it was the younger man who took the spoils.

Things started well enough for Barriola, who took the first point in a monumentally hard fought rally, but from then on Bengoetxea let his intent be known. In an aggressive display, he took the next six points to lead 6-1. He played with immense speed and verve, with his sotomano especially impressive, and hit winners from every angle, producing a txoko, a steepling ball over Barriola’s head, a crosscourt rocket and a dos paredes in quick succession. Although Barriola recovered to a degree, this opening salvo set the tone for the rest of the match, in which the eventual loser was never able to get his nose in front of his opponent.

Bengoetxea relaxed his guard a little in the following points, hitting wide, short and high, and succumbing to the pressure applied by the Barriola serve. Barriola showed his colours here, entering into some titanic rallies, topped off with several impressive winners, and managed to level the score at 8-8. However, the close struggle this suggested did not materialise as from this juncture, Bengoextea held the clear balance of power. Barriola ceded his hard won initiative with three consecutive misses, two from the Bengoetxea serve. Two slightly careless directional mistakes from Bengoetxea kept Barriola in the game at 10-11, but he would add only three more points to that tally. The two continued to attack each other hammer and tongs, but Bengoetxea was faster, more polished, and relentless. Many of his points were handed to him by errors from his opponent, but a large number of these infelicities were enforced by the 2008 champion’s sheer dynamism, and ability to turn defensive positions into ones of strength. Bengoetxea, though he committed seven errors, ended the match with thirteen winners to Barriola’s three.

Scoring sequence: 1-0, 1-6, 3-6, 3-7, 6-7, 6-8, 8-8, 8-11, 10-11, 10-16, 11-16, 11-19, 13-19, 13-22.

The situation in Group A is now a little complicated. It can be summed up as follows:

• Irujo is all but assured of a place in the semi-finals, having won both his matches. If he beats Bengoetxea, or loses by seven points or fewer, his place is sealed.  
• If Bengoetxea loses, he can only go through if Olaizola I loses to Barriola.
• Olaizola I must beat Barriola to have a chance, and hope that Bengoetxea loses.
• Barriola has a theoretical chance but it is a very slim one; for him to qualify, he would have to win by at least 22-6 over Olaizola I and hope that Bengoetxea loses.

The group resumes in two weeks, with both matches on 16^th May. Locations have yet to be announced.

Bengoetxea VI and Barriola, local rivals

Image from: fotolog

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Sunday 18th April, Eibar

MARTINEZ DE IRUJO beat BARRIOLA 22-12

Manomanista Group A

The world of sport has been kind to Eibar in recent weeks. Earlier this month, the Bizkaian town hosted the queen stage of the Tour of the Basque Country, which finished atop its famous Arrate climb, and cheered Samuel Sanchez to victory. The win was important for home team Euskaltel Euskadi as it represented their first of the season in a year where performances are vital to secure future sponsorship. On Sunday, in a different sport, another man sought to pull off his first big victory of 2010 in Eibar; Abel Barriola had not played in the Manomanista Championship for two years due to injury and this was a red letter day for the man from Leitza. All eyes were on him as he took on reigning champion Juan Martinez de Irujo in a game which was seen by many as an exam, a test of his recovery, his fitness and his mettle. How would this former champion, so much missed, fare on his return to the biggest stage of all?

The crowd at Astelena was not what one could call a mighty throng, but there existed a palpable sense of occasion nonetheless. The cheer which greeted the protagonists in the headline match was infinitely louder than anything aimed at the players in the doubles encounter which preceded it, and the attendant pressure manifested itself in markedly different ways in each pelotari. Irujo came out as if determined to display his credentials to the world, a defending champion willing to lay his cards on the table. Barriola in contrast looked ill at ease, like a man feeling his way and sinking. Before he had time to breath, he found himself 0-5 down and all at sea. Barriola’s first point, surely met by a sigh of relief, came courtesy of a falta from Irujo and his subsequent service winner seemed to signal better times ahead. However, it was not to be as Irujo once again surged forwards, out maneuvering Barriola, out hitting him and slaying his spirit by turning defence into attack. With the score at 9-2, Barriola took his second time out, the act of a desperate man.

At this juncture, the outcome of the game appeared all but decided. The gulf between the players both in score and in demeanor was surely unbridgeable. However, Barriola, though an underdog here, is not a minnow and he saw fit to remind us of this fact. His fortunes shifted with the point which took the score to 3-9; Barriola mustered all his resources to retrieve a txoko from Irujo before a crosscourt strike snatched the point. The crowd, or at least his supporters and the neutrals, roared its collective approval. Barriola then forced two errors from his opponent, the first with an excellent serve and the second through a barrage of long, high balls which wore Irujo down. Irujo pulled a point back at 10-5 but Barriola pushed on again to level the scores at 11-11. The true Barriola shone brightly in this period of play. There were careless errors from Irujo, but the underdog served with brilliance and controlled his rival in the subsequent rallies, punishing him with his drop and sotamano. The game now appeared poised and the crowd expectant.

What followed, however, was a let down for all but diehard fans of Irujo. The champion, as champions do, stepped up a gear and found an extra level which flummoxed Barriola and left him for dead. Barriola’s rot started with a falta, which allowed Irujo to regain the lead at 12-11. In the next points, he hit wide and then low on return of serve before succumbing to a drop and a dos paredes from Irujo, who had regained his swagger. Barriola managed one more point thanks to his opponent striking the side wall too high, but in reality it was now one way traffic. Irujo, who finished Barriola off mercilessly with a lightening bolt to the wide court, was simply too good.

It would be easy to conclude that Barriola failed his exam, but that would perhaps be too harsh. He has recently returned from a serious knee injury which robbed him of a year of action, and while he performed well in his few matches leading up to the Manomanista, a game against a rampant Irujo is an altogether different proposition. He looked ring rusty, and his match readiness will improve with time. Time is of course not wholly on his side as he needs to find his mojo swiftly to progress beyond the group stages, but he can be encouraged by his performance in the middle third of this match; he showed that he is capable of bossing points, and he can mount a serious challenge if he finds his consistency. As for Irujo, he can reflect on a job very well done. He is back and hungry after a disappointing end to the Pairs Championship and it would be hard to bet against him. The show is on the road.

Scoring sequence: 5-0, 5-1, 5-2, 6-2, 9-2, 9-3, 9-5, 10-5, 10-7, 11-7, 11-11, 19-11, 19-12, 22-12.

Irujo and Barriola, rivals in Eibar

Image from: Aspe

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Aspe have announced that Abel Barriola is set to return from the injury which has sidelined him for nearly a year. The defender tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in a doubles match last April. Initial reports suggested that he may return within five or six months but this proved optimistic. However, Barriola is once again raring to go, and will play his comeback match at his home fronton in Leitza on Friday 12th March. He will play with Berasaluze IX against Idoate and Goni III in a game which will be broadcast live on ETB-Sat.

Barriola: on the comeback trail

Image from: Noticias de Alava

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