Scores grandslam feat in Cebuana Lhuillier men's open tennis

CEBU, Philippines -  Johnny Arcilla did not disappoint his loyal followers after he posted a come-from-behind victory over archrival Patrick John Tierro to complete a grandslam feat in the 4th Cebuana Lhuillier Men’s Open Tennis Championships yesterday at Baseline tennis courts.

Arcilla pounded out a hard-earned 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-3 victory over Tierro in an exciting final showdown that lasted for two hours and 20 minutes, the longest match in the entire fourth edition of the annual event.

Tierro wanted to erase the sting of a frustrating finals encounter with Arcilla in Bohol earlier this year wherein he retired due to over fatigue.

Both Arcilla and Tierro went off to a hot start, so tough that the first set had to bet settled on a tie-break, 7-2, in favor of Tierro.

Tierro continued to pounce on but midway in the game, Arcilla bounced back while the former could only do as much.

“I saw him getting tired already so I was getting back the confidence I needed,” Arcilla said.

Arcilla’s gameplan worked well as he snatched the second set, 6-4, to forge a rubbermatch.

After scoring a point each, the multi-titled Arcilla zoomed to four straight points, avoiding any complications.

Tierro tried to get back, but Arcilla was far from pushing the panic button and made an ace to seal his win.

“Patience lang gyud. Naghuwat lang ko sa tama nga time. Pagkakapoy na niya, niana nako namakadaug ko ani,” Arcilla said.

It was Arcilla’s third straight singles title under the Cebu action of the Cebuana Lhuillier, with Tierro winning the first edition against Yanick Guba.

As of this writing, Arcilla guns for a double victory as he and Tierro were scheduled to play in the doubles finals against Rolando Ruel and Alexander Lazaro.

The pro-am finals saw the man behind the event Jean Henri Lhuillier and Jun Toledo going up against Ken Salimbangon and Niño Salvador. (FREEMAN)