Manila: After sweeping the opening round of the 31st Southeast Asian SEA Games in Vietnam on Friday, the Philippine tennis team advanced to the semifinals of the women’s and men’s team competitions.
At the Hanaka Paris Ocean Park tennis court complex in Tu Son, Bac Ninh province, both teams won the best-of-three tournament 2-0.
The Philippine women’s squad, including Alex Eala, Marian Capadocia, Shaira Hope Rivera, and Jenaila Rose Prulla, proved too strong for Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Francis Casey Alcantara, Jeson Patrombon, Treat Huey, Ruben Gonzales, and Eric Olivarez, Jr. led the men’s squad over Laos.
Thailand is the Philippines’ next opponent in all team events.
Players like Eala, Alcantara, Huey, Gonzales, and Rivera took to social media to brag about getting it to the semifinals, where both the women’s and men’s teams are guaranteed a bronze medal.
SEA Games semifinals with Team PH
“Into my first SEA Games semifinals with Team PH!” Eala, a two-time junior grand slam winner, posted on Facebook. We won our Team event matches today versus Malaysia.
Eala highlighted what it means to compete in the biannual multi-sport tournament where her mother. Rizza Maniego-Eala, had found success before winning her first SEA Games. Match to earn the first-round victory for the women’s team.
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“It’s also tremendously significant to be following in my mother’s footsteps. Rizza was a former swimmer who won bronze in the 100m backstrokes at the 1985 Asian Games in Bangkok. “I can’t wait to attempt to win for my country as she did. Eala wrote on her blog for the International Tennis Federation.
WTA World No. 397 Eala won the W25 Chiang Rai title in Thailand last month. Her second professional win after the 2021 W15 Manacor.
Alcantara, Huey, and Gonzales, all doubles specialists, won events in Egypt and the United States last month.
A junior grand slam winner, Alcantara won the M25 Cairo doubles final with Northern Mariana Islands’ Colin Sinclair, while Huey and Gonzales won the Savannah Challenger doubles title. SEA Games
Alcantara and Patrombon won the men’s doubles gold medal at the 2019 SEA Games, while Huey and Gonzales took silver.
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