The partnerships of Jennifer Bohawe and Sarah Faye Luna and Cecille Tabuena and Helen Dosdos square off with the best teams in Southeast Asia when the tournament organized by AYN Sports Management Group opens Wednesday.
The Philippine sides clash with teams from Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand and are dubbed as underdogs in this meet backed by PAL, Speedo, Gatorade, Globe, Absolute, the Philippine Sports Commission and The Philippine Star.
Coach Roger Gorayeb, who also handles the Philippine indoor team, is confident of a strong RP finish in this six-nation, 10-team tourney, pinning his hopes on the tested Bohawe — Luna pair which ruled the University Games in Bacolod last year.
Bohawe and Luna are presently in Hong Kong and are set to open the RP bid in the fifth leg of this circuit today, while Tabuena and Dosdos are being prepared by Gorayeb for the grind ahead here in this former United States base.
The roster of teams competing is a crack one, with Thailand to send Kamoltip Kulna and Jarunee Sannok, the Busan Asian Games fourth placers and Manatsanan Pangka and Rattanaporn Arlaisuk, the tandem ranked 18th in the world and the 1998 Bangkok Asiad gold medalists.
China, a world power in the sport, is likely to send a team to the Philippine leg, while Vietnam and Indonesia, like the Philippines, will be fielding in two teams for the top purse worth US$3,000.