I'm glad to see that some of my fellow Sakimaniacs like the theories I suggested. I definitely agree with Dr. Casey that the Miyanaga family feud is a great topic for discussion, and is probably the biggest and most compelling mystery in this anime/manga narrative.
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Originally Posted by Myssa Rei
In a mahjong-centric narrative, the second instance might make more sense, except for the fact that every time Saki talks about her sister in both the first anime and the manga (with reference to her playing style) suggests the opposite, that Teru was dominating even then (see every time Saki encounters a "monster", where she reacts "It's like that time with my sister!").
Indeed, some of the folk in the manga thread think that Saki's playing style, and her outlook with regards to the moves of her opponents (she OVER-estimates, rather than under-estimates, as seen with when she she goes against Yumi), was shaped by being constantly pitted against Teru.
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Well, the main reason I went with "Saki used to defeat Teru alot, and adopted the 'plus-minus zero' approach as a way of throwing matches to Teru" is because I vaguely recall Saki mentioning something about her family getting upset when she'd win.
But maybe I'm not remembering that correctly. I'm not in a position to check the first few episodes of Saki season 1, so I don't know for sure.
Perhaps it was a case that Saki was slowly getting better at mahjong, which excited her sister Teru since Teru finally had somebody that was at least a challenge for her at mahjong. But that was from Teru's perspective - from Saki's perspective, she could never defeat her sister, and that frustrated her, so Saki stopped caring and hence deliberately threw matches with the "plus-minus zero" approach. Once Teru caught on to what Saki was doing, Teru became incensed. Her sister had at least given her interesting mahjong matches before, but not now.
Teru: Stop throwing matches!
Saki: Why? It's not like I can defeat you anyway.
Teru: That's not the point. Besides, maybe one day you will defeat me... but only if you continue trying to win, of course!
Saki: Come on, sis, we both know that I can't truly compete with you.
Teru: So you're just going to quit then?
Saki: Against you? Yes. Be proud. It means you're really great at mahjong!
Teru: ... That's not what I want from my sister! No sister of mine quits at mahjong!
And there you have it. That would probably be a very poignant lead-in to a Saki/Teru Finals match where Saki squeaks out a victory (or even coming a very close second could impress Teru and re-establish their sisterly bond).