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first match (in a series)
初戦に勝ててよかった。
It was good to win the first match.
強豪チームが初戦で敗退した。
The strong team was eliminated in their first match.
監督は初戦の相手選手の特徴を徹底的に分析した。
The coach thoroughly analyzed the characteristics of the opposing players for the first match.