Ryoma

He does not go easy on himself and pushes himself more, rather than letting himself rest. He is specifically a singles player, though he did try doubles once with teammate Momoshiro Takeshi. After seeing how bad he was at doubles, Coach Ryūzaki usually placed him in the S3 (Singles 3) or S2 (Singles 2) position. When captain Tezuka Kunimitsu goes away for rehabilitation for his arm, Ryoma and teammate Fuji Shūsuke take turns for the S1 (Singles 1) position. In the Nationals, Ryoma often found himself placed in the S1 position nearly every match.

Ryoma has a habit of forgetting people that he finds insignificant or met for a brief moment. The first person he forgets is Sakuno which saddens her. Another person he forgets is Sasabe and his father. He also forgot Sengoku as they met just briefly. Whether he does this on purpose is as of yet unknown.

His catchphrase (and favorite phrase) in the Japanese anime is "Mada Mada Dane", literally meaning "No, not yet" or "Not good enough", although the literal translation in Japanese is "You still have lots more to work on". In the American version, it is translated as "You still have a ways to go".

In the Prince of Tennis movie Tennis no Ōjisama - Futari no Samurai, Ryoma supposedly has an older brother named Ryōga Echizen, but the latter is later revealed to simply be a child that Nanjirō took in a few years ago. In the manga, it was confirmed Ryoga is Ryoma's half-brother.

Ryoma can be quite arrogant at times, but is usually able to back up his statements with his tennis skills. He is usually distrustful of other tennis players, and often provokes his opponent before a match. In the beginning of the series, Ryoma is not taken seriously by the other students at his school, especially at the Seishun Tennis Club. It is only after he beats two of Seishun's regulars (Kaoru Kaidō and Sadaharu Inui) that he gains respect from fellow club members. He is also unafraid almost to the point of recklessness, but rarely gets angry or out of control. In the TeniPuri family chibi episodes, Ryoma is the eldest son of the family and always creates all sorts of troubles. In other chibi episodes, he is mostly shown very skilled.

At the beginning of the series, all of Ryoma's tennis skills are a copy of his father's. With the help of his team captain, Kunimitsu Tezuka, Ryoma realizes his need to develop his own style of tennis if he intends to reach his goal and defeat his father.

With each match, it becomes apparent that Ryoma not only brings his potential to the front, but that he is constantly reaching a new point in the state of self-actualization – especially so during crucial points in a match. Although he views each opponent as a stepping stone of advancement, Tezuka soon becomes the wall that Ryoma has set up for himself in order to achieve actual greatness.

Although Ryoma has a rather tunneled vision as to whom he considers a rival (his father, Tezuka, and Fuji), there are many that view the first year as just that. One of the more notable examples of this in the anime is Kevin Smith, the son of the tennis coach George Smith, who was defeated by Nanjiro Echizen fifteen years ago in defense of George's pupil Rinko Takeuchi, who becomes Ryoma's mother. Kevin appears later in the series in the "friendly" match between the U.S.A West Coast Region and the Japan Kanto Region. Kevin became obsessed with wanting to play Ryoma because of their pasts, whereas in the beginning Ryoma regarded Kevin's threats with a rather unconcerned attitude until he saw him play against Yamabuki's Jin Akutsu in the streets. Tezuka was unimpressed with Ryoma's attitude toward the matches, and as a result, Ryoma is forced to earn his place as a reserve player.

Ryoma also cares much about his family cat Karupin. Once, Karupin follows Ryoma to school after he accidentally packs its toy into his bag. After he discovers the fact, he frantically searches for his cat around the district.^[2] Also, Karupin had followed Ryoma to the US Open tournament by sneaking into Ryoma's bag.

He has many girl fans that are so obsessed with him. He currently doesn't show any interest in girls because of his dedication toward tennis. Occasionally, he has been seen dismissing them. Although his apathetic nature, he does show Sakuno his genuine concern. In the anime, he has saved her from time to time. In the manga (Chapter 306), he threw a tennis ball at a thief for making the prepared food she made drop onto the floor.

He defeated everyone that he battled except against his captain, Tezuka. It should be noted that while he inherited his fathers tennis skills and cockiness, his way of thinking seems to be more similar to his mother as he is shown to be quite serious, studious, and silent when possible.

Revealed in the manga, Ryoma did worship and adore Ryoga as Ryoga teased but Ryoma denied. They celebrated Halloween together, collected oranges together, and got into trouble together. This showed they were extremely close. When Ryoma witnessed Ryoga get into a car and leave him, Ryoma was devastated that he could not stop screaming out for Ryoga. This devastation could be the reason why Ryoma does not recognise Ryoga or because they have been separated for too long.

Tutorials:

Commission by ninjapirate10194.