Patrombon bows to American foe in ITF finals event

In the end, Jeson Patrombon was just a shadow of his old self. The teenage Filipino netter yielded his finals match to sixth seed counterpart Sean Berman of the United States, 6-0, 6-2 in the Chang LTAT-ITF Tennis Championship held at Nonthaburi, Thailand Sunday. Coming off three grueling encounters, the 17-year-old Filipino was obviously caught by fatigue in the final round. Berman, who took the easy rout in entering the championship round, entered the match with fresher legs. “Jeson gave his best but his legs were not there today and he was one step behnd in every rally," said veteran mentor Many Tecson. Despite failing to win the title, Patrombon is still expected to get the much needed ITF points to further improve his ranking. The country’s No.1 junior player is currently ranked 10th in the world. Patrombon’s next stop is Kuching, Malaysia for the 17th Sarawak Chief Minister Cup from March 15 to 20 where he is expected to be named the top seed anew. “This Thailand Grade 1 tournament, the first leg of the Asian Circuit, has been a great start for us, because we reached the finals in the singles and semifinals in the doubles in such a tough field. Jeson understood what happened here and we are back in high spirits and ready for Malaysia," added Tecson. Patrombon will be joined by Marinel Rudas, who needs to play in the qualifying round to earn a shot at the main draw. - KY, RCJ, GMA News