Arcilla, Joven dispute PPS-PEPP Pintaflores crown

MANILA, Philippines – Top seed Johnny Arcilla held off No. 4 Fritz Verdad’s fightback in the second set and carved out a 6-2, 6-4 victory yesterday to seal a showdown with doubles partner Ronard Joven for the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Pintaflores Festival Open Tennis Championship crown at the San Carlos City Tennis Club in Negros Occidental.

Arcilla, the many-time PCA Open champion, used his power game to dominate Verdad in the opener then broke his rival once in the next to complete his third straight-set win in row and gain a crack at the crown in the event sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and held in conjunction with the host city’s Pintaflores Festival celebrations.

In contrast, the third-ranked Joven, 31, needed to fight back from a tight opening set setback and wore down giant-killer Leander Lazaro, 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-3, in a grueling two-hour, 40-minute encounter in the other semifinal clash.

It was a sorry loss for Lazaro, who subdued second seed Vicente Anasta in the quarters, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-3, in a match that featured a series of long rallies and lasted three hours.

“It’s going to be a great title duel between these two talented players, who are basically familiar with each other’s game being doubles partner. But for sure, one will try to surprise the other, making their clash worth watching,” said Palawan Pawnshop president and CEO Bobby Castro.

Arcilla and Joven dispute the title and the top P40,000 purse at 3 p.m. today, capping the week-long event hosted by Mayor Gerardo Valmayor Jr. with Criston Carmona as organizer and backed by Vice Gov. Eugenio Jose “Bong” Lacson and Rep. Julio Ledesma.