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Miami casino works to save beloved jai alai from extinction

An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) The Jai Alai locker room sits empty and unused at The Casino at Dania Beach's now-closed Jai Alai fronton, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Kyle Kubala looks at the marks left by a cupping treatment administered by the Jai Alai fronton's trainer, as he recovers after playing several matches at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) An employee walks through the area where Jai Alai players would wait their turn to take the court, at the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Netting hangs between the court and specter seats to protect fans watching the fast-paced action on the Jai Alai fronton, at the now-closed court at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Benny Bueno, second left, a former Jai Alai player who oversees player operations for the now-closed Jai Alai fronton at The Casino at Dania Beach, talks with a press liaison and reporters in the area where players used to wait their turn to take the fronton, at The Casino at Dania Beach, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022, in Dania Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Coach Juan Ramon Arrasate, who played Jai Alai for two decades before transitioning to the role of coach 25 years ago, talks to some of his players between matches, in the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Fans watch as the Cesta Cyclones team is introduced at the start of their Battle Court head-to-head format Jai Alai match against the Rebote Renegades, in the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Michael Diaz walks off the court after losing a point, as other competitors wait to go on according to the round robin format in a Jai Alai singles match at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Chris Bueno, left, relaxes as Darryll Roque, known as "Tennessee" stretches, as they prepare for the afternoon's first Jai Alai match at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Jerseys in different colors and numbers for the various matches rest alongside wicker cestas, or baskets, on a player's couch at the Jai Alai fronton at Magic City Casino, Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Jai Alai fans watch matches from courtside seats at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Jerseys of a previous season's Jai Alai doubles and singles winners are framed on a wall, in the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Chris Bueno stretches ahead of the start of the afternoon's Jai Alai matches, at Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Players wait to run onto the court as competitors losing points come off in a round robin format, during a singles Jai Alai match at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Players wait to run onto the court as competitors losing points run off, in a round robin format, during a singles Jai Alai match at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Ben Gadsden, of the Rebote Renegades, tries unsuccessfully to return a ball from Tanard Davis, known as "Jeden," of the Cesta Cyclones, in their game of Battle Court Jai Alai at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Dennis Dalton, known by the moniker "El Barba," Spanish for "The Beard," competes in a doubles Jai Alai match in the fronton at Magic City Casino, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's last stand is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Jean Gregory Melendo Ikeda jumps for a ball as players warm up for a singles match at the Jai Alai fronton at Magic City Casino, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. What could be Jai Alai's curtain call is taking place at Magic City Casino, where a small group of committed enthusiasts are doing all they can to save the game that originated in the Basque region of Spain and France but took root in Miami during the go-go days of of the 1970s and 1980s. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) Chris Bueno returns a ball in a Jai Alai match at the Magic City Casino fronton, Sunday, March 13, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)