Team Japan is heading to the U-17 World Cup final, but first its own players have to fight for places on the team. The Prince of Tennis II U-17 WORLD CUP: Final Member Selection Match premieres on September 30. The newly released first-episode preview shows coach Mifune putting the team through an internal competition before the match against Spain.
Japan has beaten Germany, but Byodoin and Oni are injured. With only two days until the final, Mifune needs to decide who will take the court. The opening episode is called “Japan’s Next Battle.” It begins with that decision, not with Japan playing Spain.
How do the selection matches work?
The players compete for three singles places and two doubles places: S1, S2, S3, D1 and D2. Winners earn the chance to play in the World Cup final. That makes these matches unusual for Japan: friends and teammates now have to beat each other to stay in the lineup.
The first-episode preview does not reveal the winners or the final lineup. It says the selection is held because the team has little time to recover from Germany and must prepare for Spain. Anyone looking for the actual Spain final should know this arc is about choosing the players who will face Spain.
Which familiar players are back?
The official site lists Ryoma Echizen, Shusuke Fuji, Keigo Atobe, Kintaro Toyama, Kuranosuke Shiraishi and other Japan players. Junko Minagawa returns as Ryoma, Yuki Kaida as Fuji, Junichi Suwabe as Atobe and Yu Sugimoto as Kintaro. The announcement also names new voice actors for several Spain players, including Tasuku Hatanaka as Julio Roman and Reiji Kawashima as Mars de Colon.
Where can you watch it?
Crunchyroll lists the new series for September 30, with subtitles in production. Its announced regions include North, Central and South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, the CIS and the Indian subcontinent. Crunchyroll has not posted an exact subtitled release time or dub date in the fall schedule, so check the service on premiere day for your local time.
In Japan, TV Tokyo starts its Wednesday broadcast at 24:00 on September 30 — in other words, just after midnight on October 1. TV Osaka and TV Aichi have later overnight slots. That Japanese TV timing does not necessarily match when the episode goes live on Crunchyroll.
This is the third U-17 World Cup anime installment. It follows the Germany semifinal and leads toward the final with Spain. Studio M.S.C handles animation, and the official trailer shows the team back on court. The premiere sets up the selection matches; it does not settle who wins them.
