Escala i corda

Escala i corda (Valencian pronunciation: [esˈkala j ˈkɔɾða], "stairs and rope") is the most prestigious variant of Valencian pilota, and the only one apart from raspall to have professional players.

The "Escala i corda" variant began around 1910, when the player Nel de Murla settled a 1.80 m high rope in the middle of a trinquet and thus divided the courtfield in two sides. Until then, the midfield was variable, using the "ratlles" of the Llargues variant.

In "Escala i corda" a kind of ball called pilota de vaqueta (Catalan for little cow ball) is used; it is a small and extremely fast ball, very tough, and bounces well. The name comes from the fact that it is made of cow leather. The dimensions of the ball for adult games are 42 mm diameter, 138 mm circumference, and 42 gr weight.

The objective of an Escala i corda game is sending the ball over a net by hitting it with the hand. When the opponent does not return it, the sending team wins the quinze.

Matches are played to 12 games, counting 5 to 5: every game scoring is valid for 5 points. Every game is divided in 4 "quinzes" (15, 30, val and game). The team who first gets 60 points for 12 games is the winner.

Every quinze begins when the "feridor" player throws the ball to the opponent "dauer", who must turn it back to the team in the "rest" midfield. This way, both teams will be sending each other the ball over the net, only hitting it by hand; they may hit the ball in the air or when it has bounced once on the ground. This continues until one of the teams is not able to throw it back or a "fault " is committed.

"Faults":

There is also a way to get direct "quinzes", by throwing the ball to the gallery of the trinquet or the "llotgeta" and without the ball coming back. In some competitions this is not allowed, such as the Circuit Bancaixa league or special challenges. This is because this way of scoring is too easy for certain players and is regarded as less spectacular. Anyway, in one-on-one matches "galleries" are allowed.

Escala i corda may be played one-on-one, but it is mainly a team sport. Teams may be formed by two or three players, and they may play in every combination (2 vs. 2, 3 vs. 3, or 3 vs. 2 if those three players are considered not to be as good as the other two); this way, bets are more interesting.

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Wikipedia