This match pits a lefty against a lefty!
I wonder which will win--
the only 7th grader in this tournament,
or the younger brother of the tennis genius, Fuji?
Fujis younger brother, huh?
Being the younger brother of the genius,
all I ever hear is about my brother.
Im me! Im Yuta Fuji!
Say
I hear youre Fujis younger brother.
I wonder which of you is the better player.
I cant wait to see!
I wonder which of you is the better player.
I cant wait to see!
Echizen is trying to provoke him. Oh!
Thats so like him!
Fujis younger brother?
Thats what I heard, too.
Hes doing it on purpose.
To mess with Yuta like that this kid is a really scary rookie!
Sure is!
The younger brother against Echizen
They dont call him the Lefty-Killer for nothing.
I hear that in a practice match he beat Saeki, the player from Chiba.
What? No kidding!
Of the sixteen matches hes played against lefties, hes won all sixteen.
What?! All sixteen?!
Why is he so good against left-handed players?
I hear hes played lots of practice matches against left-handers.
Most players are right-handed,
and theyre used to how right-handers hit the ball.
So when they play against an occasional lefty,
the spin on the ball is opposite, which makes it very hard for them to hit.
Oh! Huh?
Right! Its the opposite hand so the spin is opposite too!
And thats why he practiced?
Is it all that different?
Its very hard when the spin on the serve is opposite.
You understand that every service game is to the servers advantage, right?
Yes, especially if he has a strong serve.
And at each point during a game,
the serve area switches from right to left and back.
Yes
For a right-hander, by serving to the right, or forehand court,
and for a lefty, serving to the backhand court,
they are able to get enough angle on the serve
to pull the receiver way off the court.
However, more game points are served
from the backhand court than the forehand.
Really? Then that means a lefty has the advantage.
Right. The only game point served from the forehand
is when the score is 40 - 15.
But game points from the backhand court come at
40 - Love, 40 - 30 and Advantage, three times.
I see
With game point being the point to win the game and keep his service,
its a very important point,
and a lefty has a much stronger advantage than a right-handed player.
I get it!
Huh?
So, thats it!
Um Huh? Um Could you go over that again, please?
Ohum, okay. Are you listening?
Uh-huh Uh-huh
The Lefty-Killer
Echizen has come up against a hard one here.
If wed known,
wed have had Echizen practice against Tezuka, another lefty.
So, our little guy is at a disadvantage here
This is a one-set match. Fuji from St. Rudolph to serve.
15 - Love!
Now a serve from the backhand court. Watch this.
Ryoma!
Sure enough! It looks like Ryomas in trouble.
Yeah, its likehes confused by an opponent hes not used to.
No way! I dont care if hes right or left-handed,
Ryomas gotta win!
Come on, Ryoma!! Tomoka! Shh!
Uh-oh!
Should have known as hes Fujis brother
Looks like Yuta has polished up that on-the-rise shot hes so good at.
Huh?! Oh!
Fuji! This is no time for joking!
An on-the-riseshot? Huh? Whats that?
Its a shot hit right after the ball bounces.
In other words, as the ball rises from the court,
and before it reaches its highest point, its hit back.
That means the ball comes back a little sooner than normal.
Whats more, you dont wait until the ball has lost its speed,
but instead add your own force to it.
That way, you dont give your opponent time to get ready for the returning ball.
You can dominate the match better that way.
Thats an on-the-rise shot.
Echizen Oh
Game! Game won by St. Rudolphs Fuji.
Game count: one game to love.
Oh, no! Ryomas fallen behind!
This is bad! The opponent being a southpaw is bad enough!
You must be feeling complicated emotions.
Why?
If Yuta is happy, then Im happy.
Sure enough, this is going to be a hard match for Echizen
Its a long way from that!
The guy just kept his service, thats all!
Nows when it really starts.
Oh! Ah!
Yeah! Echizen is going to use that!
Butyou mean hes going to hit a twist serve with his left hand?
He usually does that with this right hand
Yeah!
No! He hits a twist serve with his right hand
when hes playing a right-handed player, right?
But this time his opponent is a lefty!
Oh! Yeah!
There it is!
A twist serve! A twist serve!
What a serve, but!
To Yuta, no matter what kind of weird shot comes, it means nothing.
Love - 15!
WhatWhat was that?!
Yuta! Look how far youve come
Catching a ball on-the-rise,
lessens chances for an irregular bounce,
but for you to return Echizens twist serve so easily
Youre not the player you used to be
Id even call that a super on-the-rise shot!
Amazing
Ryomas twist serve had no effect!
This is bad! St. Rudolph is dictating the game!
But Huh?
Even though he won that point, he looks so fierce!
I wonder why
That kid
He was testing me
He wanted to see what my on-the-rise shot was like.
He was testing me
He wanted to see what my on-the-rise shot was like.
That he would dare to hit me a twist serve
just to see my on-the-rise shot
Just as Mizuki said
This is one rookie to watch out for.
Thats right, Yuta! Dont let him come up to the net!
His strength lies in his serve and his net play, and
that amazing one-legged split step.
Thats a real pain
If you can handle those, Yuta, then you wont lose.
Show him what your practice against other lefties is for!
You show him, too
and then Ill show the one youre really after, your brother,
by beating him soundly
He sure is Fujis kid brother
Huh?!
So hes really?
Fujis brother?
Thats right.
Why didnt he enroll at Seigaku?
He did, at first.
Huh?! Wha?!
But he transferred out after about six months.
So he was on the tennis team?
No
Huh?! Wha?!
Why not?!
He probably didnt want to be compared
to the brother everyone calls the genius.
Ah! Ryomas going to hit another twist serve!
Huh?! What?!
But it didnt work!
Maybe hes just being stubborn
Because the timing to hit an on-the-rise shot is quicker,
it feels like the ball comes back to you almost at the same time you hit your shot.
And that means the kid doesnt have time to get to the net, sure nough.
If he doesnt get up to the net, then like earlier,
he has to play from the baseline.
Yeah This is bad, sure nough.
Hmm? Why are you talking like that?
Yeah, I dont think I like that, sure nough.
No matter how often you do it, it wont matter.
My taking the ball on-the-rise means
it nullifies any irregularities you put on it
What the?!
Th-That was fast!
Amazing speed!
Fifteen - All!
Oh, come on! Is that all youve got?
Ive played stronger lefties than you!
For sure, hes faster than when he played me.
Better lefties than me?!
Dont kid me!
He did it! Oh!
He won another one!
Game! Game to Seigakus Echizen! One game all!
Great! He caught up in the blink of an eye!
Thats our Ryoma!
Hes lost the uncertainties in his game
that he had in the District Matches.
That 7th grader from Seigaku!
What a comeback!
Dont write it off yet! That 8th grader from St. Rudolphs
What?! The kid brother of that Seigaku player, Fuji?
Seigaku player, Fuji?
The one they call Genius?
His brother? Well, they do have the same last name
What? You didnt know?
Really! His kid brother, huh?
Yutas not done yet.
What?
He hates to lose. Always has.
Boy, that kid is amazing!
Hes got the Lefty-Killer on the ropes!
Damn.
Right! This is no time to let up!
Theres something I have to accomplish!
When I enrolled at Seigaku last year, all I ever heard about was my brother!
I was sick of it!
Sick of those voices!
So, I didnt join the tennis club there,
but started taking lessons at a tennis school some distance away.
To become a better player than anyone!
SARUTORI TENNIS SCHOOL
One of the members of our group couldnt make it,
so would you join us?
Yeah! Id be glad to.
Great! Hes a pretty good player!
After all, hes the kid brother of that Seigaku player, Fuji
Coach!
Is that so?
Well, more importantly, youve got a great on-the-rise shot.
I was amazed!
Huh? Thanks
Ive heard of Seigaku, sure nough
Theyre the toughest school in Kanto.
Do we play them in the District Matches?
Heh-heh Oh, well. Doesnt matter.
Oh, I forgot to introduce ourselves.
Were all playing for St. Rudolphs tennis team starting this fall.
This fall? What does that mean?
Theyre recruiting strong players from all over.
Theyre aiming for the Nationals
Youre really good!
I havent lost that bad since I played my brother
UhI mean
No, I should say the same.
If you had perfected that on-the-rise shot, I wouldve been in trouble.
Hmm?
Youve still got a ways to go yet.
Youve got lots of potential.
I cant believe youre buried in a place like this,
Yuta
Uh Mizuki!
Please tell me more about St. Rudolphs!
I want people to remember my name for what I do
Thats what Ive been working on, and this is my answer!
Go get im, Yuta!
That stance
Now you show them the special shot I taught you.
Do it in front of everyone!
That was!
What was that?!
A twist spinshot
Wow
Well!
Did you see it? That was Yutas twist spin shot!
I am Yuta Fuji, an eighth grader at St. Rudolph.
Ive been playing tennis solely to surpass my older brother Shusuke Fuji.
But this seventh grader from Seigaku, hes trying to beat my twist spin shot
and hes even telling me that hes played better lefties than me!
Dont kid me!
Say what you want only after you beat me!
Next on The Prince of Tennis: Drive B
Fine! Bring it on!