Ignoring the problems besetting the sport back home, Filipino ace netter Francis Casey Alcantara did what he does best on the tennis court and shone brightest in Singapore recently.
Playing in tandem with Dutch Sem Verbeek, Alcantara completed a masterful sweep of the doubles events of the three-week Singapore Futures.
The Filipino-Dutch tandem displaced all its Japanese counterparts in the quarterfinals to win the doubles championship. The duo won the title over Hiroyasu Ehara and Sho Katayama, 6-3, 6-2 in the final to bag the F1 trophy.
In the following week, both Alcantara and Verbeekblazed blazed through to the championship round and emerged victorious in the F2 tournament.
Alcantara and Verbeek completed a clean sweep after the duo drubbed fourth seeds Yuichi Ito of Japan and Nam Hoang Ly of Vietnam, 7-6 (3), 6-2, in the finals to take home the F3 title at the Kallang Tennis Centre in Singapore.
“We were very confident going in the third leg, but at the same time, nervous because of the pressure to win again. We just believed in ourselves and carried on. Words can’t describe how happy we are in achieving this feat,” Alcantara, ranked 430 in the world, said after the sweep.
The 25-year-old Cagayan de Oro City native is no stranger to the international platform as he had donned the Philippine tri-colors on numerous occasions and participated in elite-level events, including the 2009 Australian Open in Melbourne.
Alcantara, who reached his highest junior world standing of No. 14 in 2009, currently occupies the No. 431 seat in the rankings of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
Alcantara was named as one of the players that will compose the Philippine National tennis team in the 2017 Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia next month.
The line-up was submitted by the Philippine Tennis Association (Philta) to the office of Southeast Asian Games chef de mission Cynthia Carrion but it was not accepted as the final list because of the leadership squabble in the association.
The lineup had the signature of Tony Cablitas, who was purportedly elected president in a recent election that was not recognized by the Philippine Olympic Committee. (POC).
Despite the warning by the POC that the elections called by Philta board member Romeo Magat will not be recognized, the group of Magat still proceeded with the proceedings and elected Cablitas, whose assumption to the board was still being questioned.
The POC only recognizes Edwin Olivarez, mayor of Paranaque City, as Philta president and he alone can call for an election and sign documents, including lineup of athletes for international competition, in behalf of the association.
Athletes like Alcantara an unperturbed and continue to compete outside the country to gain points and boost their international ranking.
Alcantara believes that tennis in the Philippines is growing despite the leadership problems and calls on youngsters to take the sport.
“Hopefully people will start picking up their rackets and play tennis because it is a good sport. We do not need to be really big and tall to play tennis. It is also a very good sport to socialize with friends.”
Unlike basketball and volleyball, Alcantara admits that tennis has a long way to go in terms of local following. “I hope that tennis will be as popular as basketball and volleyball. I know it would be really hard for that to be achieved but I am really hoping that Pinoy fans would love tennis as they love those other sports.