TOP seed Duane Batad and unranked Jerame Balaquit booked lopsided results to rule their respective divisions and lead the local bets’ romp in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala (PPS-PEPP) Mati City national juniors tennis championships at the City of Mati courts in Davao Oriental recently.
Batad yielded just two games in four matches to pocket the boys’ 16-under title, capping his domination with an 8-0 rout of Jolimar Prado in the finals, while Balaquit blasted Louise Plaza in a duel of unfancied bets and took the girls’ 14-under diadem via the same scoreline in the Group 3 tournament presented by Dunlop.
Balaquit also gained cracks at the 16- and 18-under titles but fell short against Stephanie Abos from Banay-Banay, 8-4, and bowed to fellow Mati native Jaden Orquia, 8-1, respectively, although those were enough to net her a share of MVP honors with Batad in the four-day tournament sponsored by Mayor Michelle Rabat and City of Mati tennis club president Rosendo Linsag.
Other homegrown winners were Martineto Bahay and Benedict Ukay, who bagged the boys’ 14- and 18-under trophies, respectively, while Dexter Salcedo topped the boys’ 12-under side and fellow Lupon native Roanne Garuda captured the girls’ 12-U crown in the non-ranking tournament which served as part of the country’s longest talent-search put up by Palawan Pawnshop president and CEO Bobby Castro.
Bahay, who ripped Anton Yee. 8-3, in the semis, trounced Dave Cero, 8-5; Ukay, who foiled Batad, 8-4, in the Final Four, repulsed Andrei Yee, 8-4; Salcedo trampled Martin Urboda, 8-2, after blanking Roy Cabanlit, 8-0, in the semis; and Garuda crushed April Cabanlit, 8-3, following an 8-0 romp over Julia Quimba in the Last 4 phase of the event backed by ProtekTODO, PalawanPay, Unified Tennis Philippines and Universal Tennis Rating.