THE best and the brightest in Philippine tennis, including the future stars, gear up for a battle royale in the PPS-PEPP MAC’s Crankit Open and Juniors tournament, which gets going tomorrow (April 21) at the Philippine Columbian Association courts in Paco, Manila.
Jeson Patrombon, coming off a victory in the just-concluded Brookside Open, heads the cast in the men’s singles Open which also drew the likes of Johnny Arcilla, PJ Tierro, Vicente Anasta, Leander Lazaro, Bryan Otico, Fritz Verdad, Noel Damian, Rolando Ruel Jr. and Marc Reyes.
Toughening up the field are Aussies Andrew Paul Bennet, a former Davis Cupper and among the Top 100 players in the ATP, and Timothy Thacker, a former Top 50 player Down Under.
Marian Capadocia, also the winner in the Brookside Open, banners the women’s side that includes fancied Khim Iglupas, Aileen Rogan, Patricia Velez, Clarice Patrimonio, Shaira Rivera with American Kane Madison and Aussie Gabrielle Murphy spicing up the elite field.
Sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala, the MAC’s Crankit Open also features the juniors age-group championships held simultaneously with the Open with Mlang, Cotabato’s Jazelle Madis, Bea Acena from Dubai and Laguna’s Denise Bernardo leading the girls’ 18-and-under cast and Athan Arejola from Makati, Laguna’s Tim Gumban, Cagayan de Oro’s Matt Palasan and QC’s Loucas Fernandez headlining the boys’ field in the premier division of the event sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines.
Other backers of the event, which stakes a total prize fund of P580,000, are Dunlop, Happy Pet Products, Rep. Patrick Aquino, Tan Yan Kee Foundation, Pacific Cross, Secure Storage, The Catalog Shopper, Sea King, DWIZ 882 AM, Positive Session, Silver Screen and Brohood.
“This is going to be an exciting week with the best of the elite and the top players in the juniors ranks competing,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro. “We also thank MCTA founder-coach Patricia Concon-Puzon for spearheading the staging of the event as part of the Australian group’s continuing effort to help boost Philippine tennis and produce future champions.”
For details, call the PPS-PEPP sports program development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.
“My dream is to establish unity. The tournament is aimed at unifying all groups and focusing on doing everything together and at the same time give everybody a chance to compete, particularly those from the provinces,” said Puzon, a former mainstay of the Philippine team and member of the Australian Tennis Professional Coaches Association with a Master Pro Level 3 title. She has been conducting a series of tennis clinics nationwide the last few years, including the MCTA-ATPCA Tennis Teachers/Coaches Conferences.
Up for grabs in the Open are the men’s and women’s singles titles along with the doubles crowns in both categories. The men’s singles champion will receive P100,000 while the women’s titlist will get P50,000 with prizes distributed all the way down to the qualifiers.
