FIL-AMERICAN netter Treat Huey made history for Philippine tennis as he and Max Mirnyi of Belarus whipped the pair of British player Jonathan Marray and Canadian Adil Shamasdin, 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3, in the men’s doubles quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Championship at the All England Lawn Tennis Croquet Club in London.
Their triumph allowed them to advance to the semifinals.
Huey, who is ranked no. 24 in the world by the Association of Tennis Professionals, and the 25th-ranked Mirnyi, are a win shy of their first-ever Wimbledon finals
They meet the French pair of Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, who are ranked no. 2 and 3 in the world, in their semis clash on July 7 (July 8, Manila time).
For Marray, it was his second attempt for the Wimbledon Grand Slam title, and it will have to wait for another year, according to The Star of UK.
Marray admitted to have played below par against two of the most formidable players on the men’s doubles’ circuit.
He said he lost his serve in the first game, setting the tone of the match.
“It was a disappointing performance and I didn’t play very well personally,” said Marray afterwards to the Star of UK, “They were good but I served rubbish from the off and just couldn’t get my rhythm going.”
For the 30-year-old Huey, who is based in Washington, DC, this is his first semis stint in the doubles competition of any major tournament he joined.
Huey also made it to the quarterfinals of the US Open in 2013 and reached the mixed doubles’ semis at the Australian Open earlier this year.
He had already reached the men’s doubles’ quarterfinals in Melbourne in 2014 and 2016.
Huey’s stint serves as part of his preparation for the Philippines’ tie against Chinese Taipei in Manila next week.
“Treat is showing the world that we Filipinos can be world-class in tennis. He’s doing it sans the hype and attention. He just keeps on winning. This will augur well for the confidence of the rest of our Philippine Davis Cup team’s match against Chinese Taipei next week. I hope he goes all the way and become the first Filipino professional tennis player to win a Grand Slam tennis title, said PH Davis Cup team manager Jean Henri Lhuillier.