PH junior team triumphs in Malaysia tennis tourney

Madis, 14, now has four titles, including two from the 37th RGB Penang Open Age Group Tennis Championships last week. (File Photo: John Fornander/Unsplash)

MANILA – Tennielle Bedua Madis of M’lang, North Cotabato scored another double victory in the Perlis leg of the MILO International Junior Tennis Championships in Malaysia on Friday.

Madis and No. 1 seed Chanya Ng Kai Ning of Singapore were declared co-champions in the girls’ 16-under singles category when their scheduled final match was canceled due to rain.

Madis, the No. 2 seed, defeated compatriot Eidlemar Dane Basijan, 6-0, 6-1, to arrange a title showdown with Ng, who scored a 6-2, 6-1 victory over No. 3 seed Alyssa Wong of Penang.

Madis and Basijan were crowned doubles champions after winning all their eight matches.

Madis, 14, now has four titles, including two from the 37th RGB Penang Open Age Group Tennis Championships last week.

“I thought I would never have an opportunity like this, but God gave me another chance to show what I can do in tennis. I thank God for giving me the strength to finish the two tournaments. It feels good that my sacrifice in training paid off. I would like to thank the coaches and the other people who supported me,” she said in an interview on Saturday.

Madis, a grade 9 student at the Southern Baptist College, is currently training under her father, Rommel, after national junior coach Tom Falcis returned to Manila last year.

“In spite of the difficulty of combining studies and training, she still performed well. I am proud of her achievements,” said Rommel, who thanked Dunlop Philippines for sponsoring Tenny’s rackets.

In the boys’ division, No. 1 seed Josh Benedict Lim of Lanao del Norte and No. 2 seed Aaron Kevin Tabura of Cebu City were also declared co-champions in the 14-under category.

The 13-year-old Lim, a grade 7 student at Lala National High School, marched into the final round following a 6-4, 7-5 victory over No. 3 seed Louis Tan Shao Toong of Singapore.

Tabura, a grade 9 student at the University of Visayas-Pardo, won his semifinal match over unseeded Arabdjanov Akmal of Uzbekistan, 6-2, 7-5.

In the doubles category, the top-seeded pair of Lim and Tabura won the gold medal over third seeds Louis Tan and Pranav Chanddrakatan of Kedah, 6-1, 7-5.

Coach Jun Tabura said Aaron Kevin and Josh Benedict learned a lot from the tournaments.

“They joined the tournaments to gain experience. In Penang, they were nervous during the game. Lim lost in the quarterfinal but he beat the same opponent in Perlis. The way they performed from the first tournament to the second showed their determination to win,” said Tabura, who together with coaches Merlo Pornobi and Jovy Mamawal accompanied the athletes.

The other co-champions in the singles category were No. 1 Raesyamalan Jaganadan and No. 2 Devesh Sarawanan of Selangor (boys’ 16-under); No. 1 Seo Min Sik and No. 4 Park Do Hyun of Korea (boys’ 12-under); No. 1 Yeom Sia and No. 4 Lee Ye Jung of Korea (girls’ 12-under); No. 1 Choi Min Geon and No. 2 Kim Hyun Hak of Korea (boys’ 10-under); and No. 1 Kim Ayul and No. 2 Jang Hyoin of Korea (girls’ 10-under).

Other winners in the doubles category were top seeds Raesymalan Jaganadan and Devesh Saranawan of Selangor (boys’ 16-under), Siti Umairah Mohamad Arif of Kedah and Dhevieena Sarawan of Selangor (girls’ 14-under); Lee Jong Won and Kim Ji Han of Korea (boys’ 12-under); Lee Ye Jung and Yeom Sia (girls’ 12-under); Choi Min Geon and Bang Jun Young (boys’ 10-under); and Kim Ayul and Jang Hyoin (girls’ 10-under).