Mendoza slams Tierro, faces Arcilla in final

MANILA, Philippines - Jurence Mendoza took out another seeded bet in his drive to the finals, beating No. 3 Patrick John Tierro, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, to set up a title clash with top seed Johnny Arcilla in Philippine Columbian Association (PCA) Open Tennis Championships at the PCA indoor shell clay court in Paco, Manila yesterday.

The 15-year-old Mendoza, who earlier booted out second seed Elbert Anasta, bucked a second set setback and broke Tierro once in the decider to gain a crack at the championship.

“I relaxed a bit in the second set and threw away points but Tierro was really determined to get even,” said Mendoza. “But I stayed focused in the third and tried to pressure him. It worked.”

But he will have loads of work against the veteran Arcilla, who demolished No. 4 Rolando Ruel Jr., 6-0, 6-3, in less than an hour.

“I made a good selection of shots and didn’t have much unforced errors,” said Arcilla, who dominated the 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 editions of the tournament presented by Cebuana Lhuillier.

The Arcilla-Mendoza final match is set tomorrow at 1 p.m.

“He (Mendoza) has beaten a number of seeded players so there’s no room for overconfidence. As much as possible, I put the pressure early to gain momentum,” said Arcilla.

Meanwhile, top seed Clarice Patrimonio and No. 2 Marian Capadocia try to arrange a showdown for the ladies crown as they go up against No. 5 Tamitha Olivarez-Nguyen and Mariel Ante, respectively, in today’s semifinal round.

A total of P500,000 is up for grabs in the tournament backed by Alagang Cebuana Plus, Just Jewels, Le Soleil De Boracay, Phiten, Pera Padala, Babolat, Head, Dunlop, PVL Restaurant, Whirlpool, Coca-Cola, San Miguel, Lizardo Tennis Academy, Tennis Athletes Unlimited, Phil. Prudential Life Insurance Co., Inc., Gilmore and PLDT.

In juniors play, Samantha Coyuito toppled Macy Gonzales, 6-2, 6-1, to claim the girls’ 18-under crown while Roxanne Resma blasted Jzash Canja, 6-0, 6-4, for the girls’ 16-under plum.