There are N players in a tennis tournament. Assuming the initial pairings are done randomly, what are the odds that a certain pair will play each other?

(In reply to re: I undestood right? - no, WRONG. by Old Original Oskar!)

"Two problems: the odds of a person playing another in the first round are 1/(N-1) -- he will play someone, and there are N-1 other players -- so your answer isn't right."

I disagree with you. Assuming my first understanding of the problem:

There are C(N,2) possible pairings. The odds of a certain pair to play each other is 1/C(N,2). What are the odds of YOU and I to play each other in the first round?

Posted by pcbouhid on 2005-08-02 18:18:16