IN-FORM Bryan Otico knocked off another rival in straight-set fashion while Shaira Rivera sustained her form and stunned No. 4 Wing Ka Lin of Hong Kong as they moved into the quarterfinal round of the Phinma-PSC Juniors Tennis Championships Week 2 at the Manila Polo Club in Forbes Park yesterday.
The top-seeded Otico, winner of the PCA Open last week who eased out Japanese Nowa Matsubayashi, 6-3, 6-2, last Tuesday, clobbered Malaysian Danial Ahmad Farid, 6-2, 6-1, to roll into the quarters against the winner in the Jericho Grollman of the US-Odeda Arazza of Indonesia duel.
Arthur Pantino, runner-up in Week I of the Group 4 ITF (International Tennis Federation) 18-and-under event sponsored by the Philippine Investment Management Consultants (Phinma) and Technifiber, also gained a berth in the Last 8 with a 6-4, 6-2 decision over Hong Kong’s Marvin Lee. He will next face the victory in the Ryota Ishii of Japan-Shamirul Adam Das of Malaysia clash being played at presstime.
Also advancing to the quarters is Taiyo Yamanaka of Japan, who subdued Darrshan Suresh of Malaysia, 6-1, 6-3, in the upper half of the 32-player draw of the event sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association (Philta).
Rivera, on the other hand, upended Wing, 6-1, 6-2, as she crashed into Last 8 in the girls’ side that includes No. 2 Punnin Kovapitukted, Lisa Mays of Australia, Chinese Jingyi Li, Elizabeth Stevens of the US and Week I champion American Nicole Hammond.
Kovapitukted toppled China’s Fangran Tian, 6-4, 6-1; Mays scored a 6-4, 5-2 (ret.) win over Sakura Kurokawa of Japan; Li, who upset top seed Chang Ting-Pei of Taiwan in the first round, held off Annika Kannan of India, 6-3, 6-3; Stevens repulsed Charmaine Yi Seah of Singapore, 7-5, 6-7(6), 6-4; and Hammond came away with a 6-0, (ret.) victory over Xuanjin Li of China.
No. 7 Saki Oyama trounced Malaysian Elysia Wan, 6-2, 6-3; while No. 8 Yuna Ohashi, also of Japan, crushed Sheena Karrasch of Hong Kong, 6-1, 6-3.