1novels Chapter 186 Doubles 1, Who Has a Better Chance of Winning?
Chapter 186 Doubles 1, Who Has a Better Chance of Winning?
The moment the two Hyotei players walked side by side into the stadium entrance, the Hyotei supporters in the stands erupted in cheers.
"Aaaaaah!!!"
"Shishido! Ootori!"
The flashing support fans opened and closed in unison, the crisp sound of the fan surfaces colliding mixed with the uniform chants of "Hyotei will win!", like a golden wave rolling over the stands, causing the metal mesh of the railing to tremble slightly.
Their momentum was even stronger than at the start of the second doubles match, as if they wanted to make up for the regret of forfeiting in the previous match in this game.
On the Seigaku side, Inui Sadaharu closed his thick data notebook and Kaidou Kaoru took off his coat and walked out of the rest area.
Inui walked ahead at a leisurely pace, his expression obscured by the reflection of his glasses. Kaidou followed half a step behind, gripping his racket, his eyes beneath his headscarf sharp and intimidating, his lips pressed into a thin line, exuding an aura of "don't mess with me."
As the two stepped onto the rubberized track, one after the other, Gan muttered something.
Kaidou didn't hear him clearly, or rather, he had no intention of listening. He gripped his racket, his gaze fixed on the Hyotei players' tunnel across the way.
Ryo Mochizuki leaned back in the coach's chair, her azure eyes following Shishido and Ootori's retreating figures as they stood on the left side of the field.
He reached up and adjusted the green hairband on his forehead, his movements unhurried, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.
In the Seigaku rest area, several people stood behind the fence, their eyes all fixed on the two Hyotei players who had just appeared.
Kikumaru stood next to Oishi, crouching down to peek through the gap in the railing, blinking several times.
He glanced back at Oishi and asked in a low voice, "That long-haired guy from Hyotei, right? Shishido? I remember he was the one who lost 6-0 to Tachibana from Fudomine in the Metropolitan Tournament, wasn't he?!"
"Yes, that's him."
Oishi nodded, watching the backs of the two Hyotei members. The bandage on his right arm was still stiff, and he could only lightly hold the railing with his fingertips. His brows furrowed, and his voice was a little deep: "I didn't expect Hyotei to send Shishido and Ootori to do doubles."
"Isn't doubles always their weak point?" Momoshiro chimed in, scratching the back of his head. "Hyotei's doubles used to be Oshitari and Mukahi, but I don't think I've ever seen them in an official match."
Kaidou was already on the field. He didn't turn around, but when he heard his teammates' comments behind him, he hissed.
Inui pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting light, his tone unreadable: "Hyotei has a new coach this year, and their training system is completely different from last year. All the data from before this match may need to be re-evaluated."
After he finished speaking, he closed his notebook, looked at Shishido and Ootori on the field, and frowned almost imperceptibly.
Tezuka stood at the very edge, his short, brown hair fluttering slightly in the wind. His gaze, behind his glasses, fell on the two members of Hyotei for a moment, then shifted away.
"Being able to use it in doubles or singles means you have enough confidence."
Ryoma Echizen leaned against the railing, his hat pulled low. He twirled a tennis ball in his hand, rolling it from his fingertips to his palm.
He glanced at Hyotei's direction, then looked away, his voice carrying a hint of nonchalant arrogance: "It's doubles... not singles, it doesn't matter who it is."
"Echizen, don't say that."
Fuji stood next to him, his eyes curving into two arcs, a smile on his lips, but his tone was anything but cheerful, "The doubles team has changed to Taki and Mukahi for doubles team two, and Shishido and Ootori for doubles team one. Each team looks like it was put together at the last minute, but none of them are simple at all."
"Anyway, it's definitely not just to make up the numbers."
"That Coach Mochizuki doesn't play useless cards. Inui's stats might not be effective this time!"
Echizen leaned against the railing, clutching the tennis ball in his hand, pulling his hat brim down even lower. He pursed his lips, his voice still arrogant, the end of his tone carrying his usual cockiness, "Then let's wait and see if they can catch Inui-senpai's data tennis ball."
He paused, glanced at Shishido on the court, then looked towards the Hyotei coaching bench, and muttered something under his breath.
"It's still a long way off."
No one knew whether he was referring to the opponent on the field or the strategist acting coach.
-
On the court, four players from both teams have already moved to the net.
Shishido raised his chin, his gaze like a cold icicle, sweeping directly over the two opposite him. Feng stood beside him, bowing slightly, her attitude polite, but her hand gripping the racket remained unwavering.
Inui pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting a cold light. Kaidou gritted his teeth, his eyes fierce as if he were about to pounce and bite someone.
Four hands lightly touched at the net, the cool racket grips brushing against fingertips. There was no small talk, and even their eye contact was tinged with tension.
-
On the rest area stands, the three first-year students from Seigaku huddled together, watching this scene.
Katsuro Kato craned his neck to look at the court, his voice low: "The two players from Hyotei who are playing... they both look really tall."
"It's not tall," Katsuo Mizuno corrected him. "It's that senior named Ootori who's tall. The other one isn't particularly tall either... anyway, he looks fierce."
Satoshi Horio stood between the two of them, his hands gripping the railing.
He glanced at Hyotei's side a few times, then turned to look at Inui and Kaidou, who were already on the court at Seigaku. He puffed out his chest, straightened his neck, and raised his voice by two octaves:
"What are you afraid of! Inui-senpai and Kaidou-senpai are definitely stronger than them! Look at those two from Hyotei, one with a ponytail and the other with silver hair... they don't look that strong!"
He shouted this quite loudly, but the cheers around him were so loud that most of it was drowned out as soon as he finished speaking.
The Hyotei support group was waving their matching support fans, their golden school badges shimmering in the sunlight, and their slogans surged forth, making the stands tremble.
Horio, a little unconvinced, clenched his fist and swung it, then stood on tiptoe and cupped his hands around his mouth: "Go Seigaku! Inui-senpai! Kaidou-senpai!!!"
Katsuro Kato was jolted to the side by his elbow and quickly tugged at his sleeve, his voice soft and uncertain:
"Horio! But in the last match, Hyotei's Mukahi and Taki had such amazing teamwork that I'd never seen before, and they played so well..."
"That was just a coincidence!" Horio retorted, leaning forward even further. "Inui-senpai's data tennis is unbeatable! He can definitely predict all their shots!"
Seeing his enthusiasm, Mizuno Katsuo nodded in agreement, clutching his crumpled support handkerchief in his fingers. However, looking at the composed stances of the two Hyotei players on the field, he still felt a little apprehensive.
"Our voices are completely drowned out... Let's wait until the whistle blows and it gets quieter before we shout."
Even so, we can't afford to lose our momentum now!
Horio pouted, shook off his hand, clenched his fist, and continued shouting, crouching back behind the railing, his cheeks flushed red, "Go Seigaku! Inui-senpai, beat them to a pulp!"
The other two were infected by his enthusiasm and echoed him loudly, but their eyes couldn't help but dart towards the field.
Ryuzaki Sakuno sat in the row behind them, clutching the hem of her clothes, her eyes constantly following the figures of the two Seigaku players on the field. Her lips moved slightly, as if she were silently cheering them on, her voice so soft that only she could hear it.
The press box was even more lively.
Saori Shiba held up her camera and kept snapping photos, the sound of the shutter mingling with the surrounding chatter, while she muttered to herself.
"Hyotei's doubles lineup is something we've never seen before! Seigaku too... Both sides have new combinations, Seigaku might be able to capitalize on their momentum in this match!"
As she spoke, she turned her head to look at Inoue beside her, her voice tinged with barely suppressed excitement: "Inoue-senpai, do you think Seigaku has a good chance of winning this time? Inui's data tennis plus Kaidou's snake shot, and those two from Hyotei..."
Inoue sat next to her, flipping through the match record book in his hand, his eyes sweeping across the field, his brows slightly furrowed.
He paused, the tip of his pen hovering over the names "Ryo Shishido" and "Chōtaro Ootori" before speaking: "These two from Hyotei have very few recorded matches in the previous data. Ryo Shishido used to play singles the whole time, and Chōtaro Ootori's serve was his strength when he was a freshman... but there are almost no records of them playing together as a formal pair."
"Isn't that just like Seigaku?" Shiba Saori blinked. "They're both new teams, so it's not certain who will win."
"Um."
Inoue responded, but his gaze fell on the back of the blond boy on the Hyotei coaching bench. "But this Mochizuki Ryo, daring to use two combinations that he hasn't paired up in official matches for the second time... he must have mastered something."
"You saw Hyotei's performance in the last doubles match. Their teamwork and tactical design far exceeded our expectations before the match."
"How good can they be?" Shiba Saori pouted, her gaze fixed on Seigaku's half of the court, tilting her head. "Then what does Inoue-senpai think of Seigaku...?"
"Seigaku has a very good chance of winning."
Inoue put it bluntly, "With Kaidou's support, Inui's data tennis is much more powerful than in singles. As long as Kaidou doesn't make mistakes, Hyotei will have a hard time breaking his serve."
Saori Shiba nodded vigorously, her eyes crinkling into a smile again: "I think so too! Inui is so amazing, he must have calculated all the data beforehand!"
Inoue didn't reply, but simply turned to a new page in his notebook, ready to take notes.
-
On the sidelines, several people in the Rikkai University row also focused their attention on the two groups of players who had just entered the arena.
"It's Ootori and Shishido, not surprising."
Marui, with a green apple-flavored gum dangling from his mouth, leaned on the railing with his elbows and whistled as he watched the two players on the field. The sweet scent of the gum wafted over on the hot breeze.
"During the training camp, the two of them played doubles every day and practiced fiercely." As he spoke, he reached into his pocket for cat treats, but a hand snatched them away as soon as he took them out.
Cilang's reddish-brown curly hair brushed against his arm, his eyes sparkling like a lamb seeing green grass. "Hmm... Liang is very strict. Feng always practices until very late. Bunta~ Give it to me, give it to me, I'll feed Luna!"
"Why should I give it to you? I got it first!" Marui held the cat treat high, refusing to let go. As he raised his arm, the bubble in the chewing gum popped and stuck to the corner of his mouth.
"Luna! Eat mine! Mine smells delicious!"
Kirihara squeezed between the two, reaching out to touch the tip of the kitten's tail, while also holding up the freeze-dried chicken in his hand, snuggling into Yukimura's arms, his head jutting forward.
Hearing Marui say that, he looked up at the field and said, "That guy with the headscarf from Seigaku... ugh... just looking at his face is arrogant enough."
"I remember a few days ago Senior Liu said that he should be the one who can play that snake shot, right? I wonder if that shot is really that good? But it's definitely not as good as me, Rikkai's ace."
Kuwabara stood behind Marui, watching helplessly as the three of them scrambled around trying to feed the cat. He then took out two more packets of cat treats from his bag and handed them over, holding the packaging steadily in his palm. "Don't fight over them, there are more here."
"..."
Yanagi sat behind Yukimura, holding a notebook in his hand, the pen tip already hovering over the paper.
He half-closed his eyes, his gaze falling on Inui Sadaharu. He paused for about two or three seconds before looking away, his tone as calm as if that slight pause had never happened.
"Kaoru Kaidou's snake shot is essentially created by violently rotating her wrist to generate extremely strong sidespin, causing the ball to deflect at a large angle after landing. This move is indeed very threatening in singles."
"Inui Sadaharu's data tennis is very accurate, and his on-the-spot calculation ability is no less than mine. Against a regular opponent, his winning percentage is about 70%."
"And now?" Kirihara quickly pressed.
"Now..." Liu didn't finish her sentence before silently putting down her pen and calculating data on the paper.
Niou leaned casually on Yagyu's shoulder, twirling his silver braid in one hand and holding a small fan in the other, grinning mischievously with his usual drawn-out tone at the end of his sentence.
He said what Liu hadn't finished saying.
"Puri~ Now, Hyotei has a better chance of winning."
He raised his chin and pointed towards the coach's bench. "After all, with that guy there, they were able to train a temporary doubles team to that level in just two months. A doubles team with a fixed partner would be even more formidable."
"Inui Sadaharu's data models are always very precise." Yanagi glanced at Niou, looking at the data he had just calculated, and continued his analysis.
"If his prediction accuracy is above 85%, then Seigaku's defensive coverage in their service games can nearly double. On paper... their service game winning percentage is less than 5% lower than Hyotei's."
"If he can maintain his rhythm, his winning percentage is actually not low."
Sanada sat next to Yukimura, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on Shishido and Ootori on the field.
After listening to Liu's words, he frowned slightly: "Less than 5% lower means the difference isn't that big. But the teamwork of those two at Hyotei..."
"The level of teamwork is much higher." Yagyu pushed up his glasses, the temples sliding down to the middle of his nose, then gently pushed them back up, continuing Sanada's words, "Mochizuki Ryo's tactical system has never been about single-point enhancement, but about overall refinement. Two months of targeted training is enough to erase any statistical advantage."
"Puri~" Niou chuckled, tapping Yagyu's shoulder with his finger. "So, Hiro, you mean Hyotei has a better chance of winning?"
Yagyu's glasses reflected the light, and his tone was calm, with his usual composure.
"Tactically speaking, Coach Mochizuki's approach is indeed beyond the level of a typical junior high school. It seems unlikely that this temporary pairing from Seigaku will gain any advantage."
Sanada frowned even more, but didn't refute. He paused for a few seconds, then said, "Tennis isn't calculated. No matter how precise the data is, performance on the day is the key."
"However... the biggest problem with this temporary pairing from Seigaku is their lack of teamwork."