RP netter Patrombon triumphs in China Open

Top Filipino junior netter Jeson Patrombon made sure he will not go home empty before the year ends. Denied of an opportunity to have a decent finish in all three Grand Slam events he competed – the Wimbledon, the French Open and the US Open – Patrombon stamped his class in the China Junior Open. The-year-old Pinoy netter defeated 6-foot-2, power-hitting Serbian Nikola Milojevic, 6-3, 6-1, and bagged the title in Xiamen, China over the weekend. Patrombon, ranked 38th in the world, was all business as he was constantly moving well on the hard surface to claim the victory and end a string of losses in previous international competitions. Before this victory, Patrombon’s best showing came during the Dunlop Juniors Open in Japan where he made it to the finals before bowing to home town bet Rikuto Furuta, 2-6, 2-6. “Jeson showed the will to win in the entire duration of the final’s match," said coach Manny Tecson. Patrombon’s road to the finals didn’t come easy. In his first match against local bet Li Jiayi, Patrombon needed to overcome a woeful second set before winning a tough 7-5, 0-6, 7-5 victory. In the round-of-16, he was up against Thai foe Trong Charoenchaikul, who unfortunately suffered an injury in the third game of the second set for a 6-4, 2-0 victory. Patrombon won over Tzuf Botzer of Israel, 6-3, 6-4, to advance into the semis then hurdled past Chinese bet Zhaoyi Cho, 6-1, 6-3 to earn the right to play Milojevic, ranked seventh in this Grade 2 tournament. - RCJ, GMANews.TV