Tiger...we'll take the bait...we've racked our brains contemplating
certain examples of this scenario that you've pondered.
Note: We'll be as specific as possible for the rest of your readers.
Let's begin with the glory days of Bridgeport Jai Alai during
the 1970's:
1) Lekube (an underrated frontcourt player in our opinion) vs.
Orbegozo (another underrated frontcourt man). Orbegozo could outscore
anyone (Calzacorta, Ondarres etc.) on the cancha, but when he
would face Lekube, Orbegozo's game went to hell in a handbasket!!
For whatever reason, Orbegozo would second-guess himself and constantly
make silly mistakes playing against him. Lekube was one of the
top 20 FC players of the sport, but when Churruca became the Players'
Manager in Bridgeport, he made Lekube's life an absolute misery!!
They literally hated each other!! As a result, Lekube's performances
declined somewhat.
2) Newport during the 80's. What a phenomenal roster they contracted
during that time!!
Saez, Echeva, Félix, etc.: Saez (FC) vs. Félix (BC):
Saez dominated the Singles Game in Newport for YEARS!! He was
one of the top 3 FC players in Newport Jai Alai history. However,
out of nowhere, the 24 year-old phenom Félix began to virtually
ride the Pony Express to stardom in a short amount of time...and
as predicted, he would surpass Saez as the top player in Newport.
Félix's ability to "kill the point" with his
right-side two-walls, right-side "picada", deadly "chula",
and his long, impressive serving style exhausted Saez and caused
Saez to alter his game strategy. This unequivocably did not work
against the great Félix.
3) Newport-1988: Alberdi (Zola) vs. Gayo: (For the readers: Zola
was a track star in the 50 m and 100 m in the Basque Country before
he came to play Jai Alai in the States...I read an article in
the program 20 or more years ago about Zola and his impressive
amateur track career.) Gayo (BC) was one of the top Singles players
during the 80's. Zola would drive Gayo into a frenzy because Gayo's
legendary right-side "picada" did not have one iota
of an expected effect against the agility and speed of Zola!!
There were times that Zola caught "aire" (Gayo's "picada")
on line #2 or 3!! Man alive, you had to be the Road Runner to
catch Gayo's "picada" on those lines!!! So difficult
to do...that was spell-binding!! On a different note, it really
pained us to hear that Zola left for home during the strike...he
was going to be a superstar without question!
4) Finally, we would like to mention Lander in Milford: He absolutely
demolished everyone on the court! He had a really impressive serving
style and that made other players concerned with how to approach
a pass over Lander's head. For example, players that tried too
hard, hit the top red pad on the ceiling...those that didn't provide
enough steam, Lander would scoop up the ball in the middle of
the court, throw a carem, and send them to the cage. In short,
Lander drove everyone crazy in Milford, period.
Best regards,
Tony and the Crew
