Capadocia reaches Phinma final

MANILA, Philippines - Marian Capadocia and Alberto Lim continued their giant-slaying ways to advance to the finals and soften the impact of a shock defeat by countryman Jurence Mendoza in Week One of the the Phinma International Juniors Tennis Championships at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center yesterday.

Riding the crest of stunning victories over top seed Sri Vaishnavi Peddi Reddy of India and eighth pick Ma Yi Chi of Chinese Taipei the last two rounds, the 17-year-old Capadocia sustained her deadly form by adding No. 3 Miki Kobayashi of Japan to her long list of victims, 6-3, 7-5, to advance to the finals.

Capadocia goes for the crown against another giant-slayer in Gabriella Umoquit of the United States, a 7-6(4), 6-3 winner over No. 7 Tamachan Momkoonthod of Thailand.

Umoquit’s path was similar to Capadocia as the former also needed to bundle out a big fish, in her case No. 2 Chang Ya Ting of Chinese Taipei, 7-5, 6-0, in Tuesday’s second round of the tournament sponsored by Technifibre (official ball), Viva (official mineral water) and Powerade (energy drink).

“It’s probably my mindset to play to win that’s getting me this far,” said Capadocia, who will take the centercourt with Umoquit at 10 a.m. today for the Week One singles title and the corresponding ITF juniors points that should improve his current ranking of 431.

The day also belonged to Lim, the youngest participant at age 13 who barged into the finals following a sensational 6-1, 6-4 win over Australia’s Daniel Nolan, who is not only years older but ranked 400 rungs higher than the Filipino teen sensation.

Lim, whose confidence soared since toppling No. 5 Chen Xin of China, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, was looking forward to an interesting title showdown with countryman Mendoza but the latter, the top seed here being ranked 76th in the world, couldn’t handle No. 4 Yusuke Takahashi and succumbed in a heartbreaking 2-6, 6-4, 4-6 defeat.

A win by the 16-year-old Mendoza, who will be making his first appearance in a Grand Slam event in the Australian Juniors Open in January next year, would have forged an all-Filipino finale and an assurance that the Phl will win Week One.

Instead, the burden will be on the young shoulders of Lim, who hopes to bring his magic against Takahashi, the last remaining seeded netter in the boys side.

“It would have been nice if I play a fellow Filipino (Mendoza) in the finals,” said Lim, whose play improved dramatically under the guidance of coach Menny Tecson, the same one who trained former Top 10 juniors campaigner Jeson Patrombon.