From The Wires
The Philippines conquered both the boys’ and girls’ doubles finals of the PHINMA Group’s
international junior tennis tournament, as its first week nears its close.
Filipino duo Miguel Iglupas and John Benedict Aguilar defeated Taiwan’s Hung-Jul Chen
and Yu-Hsiang Chuang 7-5, 6-1 on the penultimate day of the J30 PHINMA International
Junior Tennis Championships 2024 held at the Manila Polo Club.
For the girls, seed no. 2 Stefi Marithe Aludo and Kimi Aiyana Brodeth bested fellow Filipinas
Jana Jelena Nicole Diaz and Tennielle Madis at 6-4, 1-6, 10-5.
Iglupas and Aguilar said it was an honor to represent the country, recalling their upset victory
against Taiwan early on in the tournament. Earlier, the pair advanced to the quarters after
ousting top seed Zi Yi Ou and Zheng-Wei Wang at 1-6, 6-2, 11-9.
“Nag-think positive kami kahit mahirap, nakatulong ‘yun sa pagkapanalo namin. Ansarap
talaga sa pakiramdam i-represent ang Pilipinas, lahat ng achievements namin para sa
bansa,” Iglupas and Aguilar said.
[Translation: We kept thinking positively even if it was difficult to do so, and that helped us
win. It feels so good representing the Philippines, to whom all our achievements are for.]
Meanwhile, Aludo and Brodeth were ecstatic over their win especially given how long their
rallies turned out during the finals.
“Worth it lahat ng pagod at hirap namin on and off the
court. Lahat ng sakripisyo namin nag-pay off din. Hindi pa dito nagtatapos,” they reacted.
[Translation: All the trials and pains we went through on and off the court were worth it. All
our sacrifices paid off. And we’re just getting started.]
PH netters to battle it out in singles finals
While Iglupas and Aguilar won the championship together in the boys’ doubles category,
they will be up against each other for the PHINMA tournament’s singles crown.
Aguilar advanced to the championships after his draw with Hong Kong top seed Sin Hang
Tam ended at 4-1, ret. On the other hand, Iglupas edged out fellow Filipino hopeful Mateo
Victor Rivas at 6-1, 6-0.
Meanwhile, Madis will be facing Taipei’s Yu Tsen Ko in the girls’ singles championship after
beating her doubles teammate Diaz in the semis at 6-1, 6-0 too.
The champions of all categories will be awarded this July 21, Sunday.
