Basque pelota blog in english – Dos paredes

Saturday 17^th December, Pamplona

MARTINEZ DE IRUJO  – BARRIOLA beat TITIN III – MERINO II 22-17

Saturday’s game at Labrit went to the form book as the tournament favourites registered a win in their opener. However, they were pushed extremely hard by the Riojan duo of Titin and David Merino. Although Irujo and Barriola game out all guns blazing and surged to a 5-0 lead, their opponents found their feet and managed to sneak ahead at 8-6 and 9-7. Irujo and Barriola dominated most of the rallies but the red pair finished them well, with Merino controlling play impressively from the back. At 14-13 there was nothing to choose between the protagonists. However, thereafter the favourites began to exert their control. Merino’s level dropped and Barriola, who finished the match without a single error, was king. Irujo also lifted his game, though he was inconsistent throughout, and without Merino firing on all cylinders, Titin looked one dimensional. Irujo and Barriola never fully threw off the shackles of their rivals, who tracked them closely and fought hard, but this was in the end a job well done.

Scoring sequence: 0-5, 5-5, 5-6, 8-6, 8-7, 9-7, 9-11, 12-11, 12-13, 14-13, 14-16, 15-16, 15-19, 16-19, 16-21, 17-21, 17-22

Service winners/errors: Titin 1/0, Irujo 0/0

Winners/errors: Titin 8/0, Irujo 12/8, Merino II 0/6, Barriola 4/0

Match time: 63:13

Balls hit: 530

Irujo was inconsistent but did enough

Source: Diario Vasco, Photo: mine

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Friday 12th November, Pamplona

XALA beat MARTINEZ DE IRUJO 22-17

Yves Salaberry walked out to play against Juan Martinez de Irujo on Friday knowing that his Cuatro y Medio challenge had already shuddered to a halt following defeat to Barriola and Olaizola II. Conversely, Irujo was already assured of a place in the final. Though this was a dead rubber, it was no dud match as both players went for the jugular, Xala to salvage some pride and Irujo to maintain his status as favourite. After a scintillating comeback from a position of 9-16 in arrears, it was Xala who took the victory to soften the blow of his exit.

The first part of the encounter was all about Irujo, who controlled every aspect of the play. The pace of the match was infernal, but Xala was outdone by Irujo who hit strongly to all areas. The game turned when Irujo retired to the locker room without permission to protest about a call which went against him. Upon his return, Xala, ever calm and collected, was a different player. Irujo appeared suddenly out of sorts, and his opponent quietly and efficiently accumulated points, nine in a row before Irujo could put a halt on his progress. This halt was as temporary as could be however; he won only one further point before Xala took a further string of four to seize the day.

This championship has assuredly not ended in the way Xala would have liked. The Manomanista champion had his chances to reach his third major final of the year but was lacking in his first two semi finals. This win will, however, serve as a reminder of the stellar year he has had.

Scoring sequence: 0-1/ 1/ 2-1/ 2/ 3-2/ 3/ 4/ 4-5/ 5/ 5-11/ 8-11/ 8-14/ 9-14/ 9-16/ 18-16/ 18-17/ 22-17

Match time: 40:00 with 10:00 of actual play

Balls hit: 222

Xala won but failed to reach his third final in a year

Image from: Pelota, Mano y Remonte

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Saturday 22^nd October, Pamplona

OLAIZOLA II beat GONZALEZ 22-15

Aimar Olaizola, in beating Sebastien Gonzalez on Saturday, became the second player to book his place in the semi-final league of the Cuatro y Medio, regaining his position in the elite four after his shock exit to Retegi Bi in 2009 and injury induced absence in 2010. The four time champion therefore keeps alive the hope of a fifth title, which would take him past Julien Retegi as the greatest Cuatro y Medio player in history.

Aimar had won his previous two Cuatro y Medio meetings with Gonzalez, beating him 22-14 in 2004 and 22-8 in 2006, but here the loser did rather better, racking up 15 points and giving his stellar opponent an early scare. Gonzalez went ahead 4-0 and tensions flared when a dubious call went to way of Aimar to reduce his deficit to 1-4. These two players are well documented as not being the best of friends, and there was no love lost on the fronton as Gonzalez complained bitterly and threw everything he had at the man from Goizueta. He once again extended his lead to 7-2, but gradually, bit by bit, Aimar came back at him, eating into both his lead and his morale. He gained ascendency for the first time at 11-10 and never let Gonzalez close to within fewer than two points. Both players blew hot and cold, errors symptomatic of the tension of the situation and the high stakes that existed. Aimar is not quite in the stunning form which he carried through the summer, but having reached the last four, he will strike for glory once again with his customary coolness and cast iron determination.

Scoring sequence: 0-4, 2-4, 2-7, 7-7, 7-9, 11-9, 11-10, 14-10, 14-11, 16-11, 16-14, 18-14, 18-15, 22-15.

Olaizola II: winners (10) errors (7) service winners (5) service faults (0) 4 ½ line faults (0)

Gonzalez: winners (7) errors (6) service winners (1) service faults (0) 4 ½ line faults (1)

Match time: 50:31

Balls hit: 250

Botilleros: Asier Olaizola with his brother Aimar  and Ramuntxo Mujika with Gonzalez

Aimar takes his place in the elite four

Image from Diario de Navarra, Source: Diario Vasco

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Sunday 9^th October, Eibar

SARALEGI beat IDOATE 22-11

This was a first round result which surprised many, with Ekaitz Saralegi easily outplaying Mikel Idoate, the 22-year old who is tipped for great things. Idoate won his place in the 2011 main championship by winning last year’s Promocion competition in grand style, trouncing Merino II 22-7 in the final after an unbeaten campaign. Saralegi, not immune to creating upsets in major competitions, went out of last year’s championship in the first round, but has already gone one better in 2011 and will meet Xala in the quarter finals.

The game at Astelena was an uninspiring one. Idoate was never in the game from 2-3 onwards, going behind 2-8, 5-16 and 9-19 before succumbing without much real fight. Saralegi was dominant in all areas, creating space through tactical nouse and hitting winners with aplomb. He notched up fifteen winners in open play with an additional two on service. Idoate won seven of his points with winners, relying on the lapses of his opponent for the remaining four. Sadly for him, Saralegi was not well disposed to the granting of gifts, and it is the Gipuzkoan who marches on.

Scoring sequence: 3-0, 3-2, 8-2, 8-3, 8-4, 9-4, 9-5, 16-5, 16-6, 18-6, 18-8, 18-9, 19-9, 21-11, 22-11.

The other two main Championship matches to be held over the weekend also yielded easy winners. Both took place on Saturday in Pamplona, affording the Labrit fans a potentially intriguing double header which in the end fell rather short of drama. In the first game, PATXI RUIZ was outplayed by OLAETXEA, a pelotari very much in the ascendant, having won both the second tier Pairs and Manomanista so far this year. He won the second tier Cuatro y Medio in 2008, and showed his readiness for the major stage here, beating Ruiz 22-13. The second game of the evening saw BERASALUZE VIII put ARRETXE II to the sword by 22 points to 8. This was plain sailing for Berasaluze but he will face tougher times ahead; his next opponent is four-time Cuatro y Medio champion Aimar Olaizola.

In the second tier Promocion Championship, ARGOTE beat the spirited UNTORIA 22-16, ONGAY compounded CECILIO’s recent lack of form in a 22-8 drubbing, MENDIZABAL III withstood a comeback from ZABALETA to win 22-15, OLAZABAL, a recent returnee from injury, beat MERINO 22-8, TAINTA beat an off-colour IZA 22-9, and GORKA goes through after an injury to JAUNARENA forced the cancellation of their game.

For the full schedule of quarter final matches, see Asegarce.

Delight for Ekaitz Saralegi

Image from Deia

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Sunday 22nd May, Pamplona

XALA beat IDOATE 22-19

Yves Salaberry won a tight match in Pamplona on Sunday, to become the first finalist of the 2011 Manomanista Championship. He was the overwhelming favourite, owing to his recent form and lasting class, but Mikel Idoate, who looks increasingly like the real deal, pushed him almost to the abyss. Idoate has had a stellar run in his first major championship, dispatching Beloki, Gonzalez and Olaizola I on his way to the semis, but Xala, although admitting fatigue, was a step too far.

Xala was always ahead, but Idoate won the adulation of the fans for refusing to lie down. Even when nine points behind at 11-19, he threw his whole being into the fight, and clawed his way back to within three points. He lost the game, but cemented his place in the affections of the masses, with his with his physicality, his thrilling volleying and his cast iron promise of great things to come; Idoate is just 21, and shows both flair and tactical wisdom beyond his years. Given his vast experience however, Xala was, as you might expect, the more polished of the two, and his quiet efficiency allowed him the upper hand. He served intelligently, using the left wall to hinder his opponent’s volley, and changing the direction of his deliveries to create the element of surprise. He was also adept at pushing Idoate wide, and testing his left left handed volley, which was from time to time found wanting. His twelve winners, double the number managed by Idoate, were varied and virtuosic, underlining the all round power of the left hander’s game.

Idoate will carry the confidence gained this year into his future battles at this level, and all the signs are that he will thrive. His time will come. For Xala however, the time is now, for he has struck a patch perhaps more purple than ever before. He will find out on Sunday the identity of his final opponent, when Olaizola II, his nemesis in the Pairs’ Final, takes on Bengoetxea VI, in what promises to be as intense a clash as they come. Whoever makes it through, this championship will swell to a fascinating crescendo.

Scoring sequence: 2-0, 2-3, 6-3, 6-5, 13-5, 13-9, 14-9, 14-10, 18-10, 18-11, 19-11, 19-16, 21-16, 21-19, 22-19

Winners: Xala 12, Idoate 6

Errors: Xala 8, Idoate 7

Service winners: Xala 3, Idoate 5

Service errors: Xala 0, Idoate 0

Match time: 55.22 minutes, with 15.02 minutes of playing time

Balls hit: 237

Xala eclipses the rising star

Source: Diario Vasco, Image from: Noticias de Gipuzkoa

On Friday, MERINO I beat JAUNARENA 22-19 in Tolosa, to reach the final of the second tier championship. He will face either Penagarikano or Olaetxea, who play each other at the same venue this coming Saturday.

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Saturday 26th March, Pamplona

OLAIZOLA II – BEGINO beat GONZALEZ – LASKURAIN 22-19

Aimar Olaizola and Aritz Begino can breathe a sigh of relief, after remaining in the competition by the skin of their teeth. Defeat here would have meant almost certain elimination, and while they would have liked a greater points difference to aid their way to the final, they will take what they got have grateful hearts, for Gonzalez and Laskurain should have won this match. Olaizola and Begino knew the gravity of this encounter, and perhaps as a result of this, were inconsistent and tight in their play, even Olaizola, known for being cold and calculating of nature on the fronton. The Goizuetarra made an uncharacteristic number of errors, five in all, but his ten winners saved his skin in the end. Laskurain did not have to work hard to put Begino under pressure, making him look decidedly uncomfortable as time and again he was forced to extricate the ball from the left hand wall.

Gonzalez and Laskurain maintained an advantage for the majority of the match, and although their gap over their rivals was never large, it seemed increasingly unbridgeable. Initially they went down 0-4, and all appeared rosy in the Asegarce garden, but as the tension crept in, they stormed ahead, 9-5 and 12-8. Their rivals doggedly closed the gap to a point at 14-15 however, and from there on, finally found their game. Aimar’s pace began to make Gonzalez suffer, and Begino rediscovered the strong, metronomic striking style to which we have become accustomed. 14-16 became 19-16. Controversy was to follow, which threatened to derail the Asegarce revival, when Aimar disputed a call from a judge. When his claim was rejected, Gonzalez and Laskurain were back in it, at 18-19. However, with their eyes on the prize, Olaizola and Begino would not be denied, and they held on to win by two points.

Victory for the pre-match favourites was justified, just about. They wobbled in the early exchanges, but like all great players, pulled through when the going got tough. There are still gargantuan challenges ahead though, as they must beat Xala and Barriola next weekend, or hope that Gonzalez and Laskruain beat Irujo and Merino II, in which case it would come down to points difference.

Scoring sequence: 4-0, 4-5, 5-5, 5-9, 8-9, 8-12, 9-12, 9-13, 11-3, 11-14, 12-14, 12-15, 14-15, 14-16, 19-16, 19-18, 21-18, 21-19, 22-19.

Service winners: Olaizola 2, Gonzalez 2

Service faults: Olaizola 0, Gonzalez 1

Winners: Olaizola 10, Begino 3, Gonzalez 4, Laskurain 2

Errors: Olaizola 5, Begino 4, Gonzalez 4, Laskurain 2

Match time: 69:47 with 29:32 actual playing time.

Olaizola II came good when the heat was on

Image from El Correo, source Diario Vasco

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Saturday 26th February, Pamplona

MARTINEZ DE IRUJO – MERINO II beat OLAIZOLA II – BEGINO 22-13

At the start of the competition, this scoreline would have seemed inconceivable, so ill at ease did the Irujo-Merino II partnership seem. However, they are coming into their own, just as Aimar and Begino appear to have, temporarily they hope, lost the plot. The former leaders have now lost three matches in a row, although there is no need to panic just yet, as they maintain second place on their own. The always well anticipated Irujo-Aimar duel failed to spark, as Aimar played at a level below his exalted best. Both forwards made early errors, but when they found their range mid way through the game, it was Irujo who came of slightly the better. He was ably supported by a Merino growing in confidence, who conceded only one error to Begino’s five. Irujo and Merino now sit in 5th, but are tied on points with Gonzalez and Laskurain in 3rd.

Scoring sequence: 0-1 1-1 2-2 4-4 9-6 10-9 11-1 17-11 17-13 22-13

Friday 25th February, Gernika

XALA – BARRIOLA beat BERASALUZE VIII – APRAIZ 22-14

There were no surprises in Gernika, as Xala and Barriola took their seventh victory to cement their place at the top of the standings. The favourites did not have it all their own way in the early exchanges, being forced to come back from 1-6 and 8-12, but they pulled level at 14-14 and lit the afterburners, employing the extra gear which they so often have at their disposal. Berasaluze and Apraiz failed to add to their score, as Barriola in particular underlined the Aspe partnership’s superiority. The victors are assured of a place in the last four, but it is over and out for their opponents, who despite a mid tournament flourish, have now lost six of their nine games.

Scoring sequence: 1-0 1-6 3-8 7-10 8-12 13-12 13-14 22-14.

Merino II and Irujo continue to grow as a pair

Image from Rioja2.com

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Saturday 8th January, Pamplona

OLAIZOLA II – BEGINO beat BENGOETXEA VI – PATXI RUIZ 22-16

In a tough encounter of 72 minutes and 692 balls, Aimar Olaizola and Aritz Begino battled their way past Oinatz Bengoetxea and Patxi Ruiz. On paper, this was a hard match to call, and was indeed close in the opening stages. The difference between the pairs lay in the backs, where Begino was far superior to Ruiz, who left Bengoetxea with little room for attack. Given the disparity behind him, a solid Olaizola was rarely forced into top gear as he and Begino moved beyond their opponents with eventual ease. Next week they face Irujo, assuming he is fit, and Merino II, serving up the always tantilising prospect of a clash between the two greatest forwards of our day.

Begino: pick of the bunch at Labrit

Image from Gara (Imanol OTEGI/ARGAZKI PRESS)

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Both Masters semi-finals took place this weekend and we now know the identity of the two pelotaris who will battle for the prestigious prize on Christmas day at Labrit. OINATZ BENGOETXEA progressed thanks AITOR ZUBIETA’s serious knee injury, which occurred during their match in Pamplona on Saturday. The Asegarce forward was 9-4 to the good when the accident happened, and had dominated the early stages, despite some expert defensive efforts from Zubieta, who was in the process of working his way into the game when his effort was cut short.

Scoring sequence: 6-0, 6-2, 9-2, 9-4. Service winners: Bengoetxea 0, Zubieta 2. Service faults: Bengoetxea 0, Zubieta 1. Winners: Bengoetxea 4, Zubieta 2. Errors: Bengoetxea 0, Zubieta 4. Match time: 22:12, with 6:21 of actual play.

Newly crowned Cuatro y Medio champion JUAN MARTINEZ DE IRUJO beat PATXI RUIZ 22-15 in Eibar on Sunday. Ruiz made by far the better start, going ahead 5-0 before his rival had had a chance to breathe. However, Irujo was unfazed, and staged the sort of comeback to which we have become used, taking the next five points to draw level. From this juncture, he never allowed himself to be headed, outdoing Ruiz for speed and invention. It was an uninspiring encounter, but Irujo met his objective with ease, and advances to another final.

Scoring sequence: 0-5, 7-5, 7-6, 13-6, 13-10, 20-10, 20-15, 22-15. Service winners: Irujo 7, Patxi Ruiz 3. Service faults: Irujo 0, Patxi Ruiz 0. Winners: Irujo 10, Patxi Ruiz 7. Errors: Irujo 5, Patxi Ruiz 4. Match time: 35:18, with 7:00 of actual play.

Bengoetxea and Irujo meet on Christmas Day

Image from Noticias de Navarra

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Saturday 11^th December, Pamplona

IDOATE beat MERINO II 22-7

Second Tier Cuatro y Medio Final

The second tier championships, which mirror their elite counterparts, aim to provide a stage for the brightest up and coming players, and this year’s Cuatro y Medio final achieved just that, pitting against each other two young men in their first year of professionalism. Both have turned heads since making their debuts, but here, 21 year old Mikel Idoate proved himself the pick of the crop with a thumping win. Law student Idoate juggles his time on the fronton with his studies, and has been in the top flight of pelota for a mere eight months.

20 year old Riojan David Merino found himself on the receiving end of Idoate’s dominance, and never found his stride, appearing as a duck out of water.  He started the match erratically and by the end was broken by his inability to make any inroads into the Idoate game, which was bolstered by an excellent serve and a potent volley, especially off the left. Merino, in probable desperation, entered into two arguments with the judges as well as a disagreement with his opponent, on his way to nine errors. His talent is undeniable and he will see better days, but on Saturday, Labrit was in the palm of Idoate’s hand.

Scoring sequence: 7-0, 7-2, 9-2, 9-3, 13-3, 13-4, 14-4, 14-6, 18-6, 18-7, 22-7.

Mikel Idoate: bursting with potential

Image from Diario de Navarra

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