By Kristel Satumbaga
Matches Friday
(PCA claycourt, Paco)
11 a.m. – AJ Lim vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Followed by
Petros Tsitsipas vs Jeson Patrombon
Tennis fans are in for a big treat Friday as world No. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas clashes with AJ Lim in the first singles match of the Philippines versus Greece Davis Cup World Group II playoff tie.
Match is at 11 a.m. at the Philippine Columbian Association claycourt in Paco, Manila with Lim, standing only at 5-foot-7, looking like a David battling against a Goliath in 6-foot-4 Tsitsipas.
Among the highlights of Tsitsipas’ impressive record were victories over the sport’s Big 3 in Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
This is not the first time that the two netters will be facing each other as they met during their junior years.
Luckily for Lim, he and his doubles partner triumphed over Tsitsipas and his friend.
But it’s a different story now as far as Lim, 20, is concerned.
“It was way, way back. It’s different now because he’s been training a lot and he’s No. 6 in the world… Of course that counts in our history, but it doesn’t really matter now,” said Lim, who has compiled three singles victories out of seven since joining the squad in 2017.
“For me, it’s just going to be a good experience playing against him.”
Despite his rankings and experience, the 21-year-old Tsitsipas is not taking the match any lightly.
“The vibe is totally different because we’re not playing on home soil, so we’ll have to take it match by match and concentrate on that,” said Tsitsipas, who is seeing action for the Greek squad for the second time since debuting last September.Meanwhile, Tsitsipas’ younger brother Petros faces Jeson Patrombon in the second singles.
“It’s something new for me, playing as a second player for the team and I can’t wait to get it started. I’ll do my best out there,” said Petros, 19, who mostly played doubles matches with the Greek squad since 2017.
Patrombon shares the same sentiment, saying he’ll do his best as this will be the first time that he will be playing against him.
The doubles match scheduled on Saturday pit veterans Francis Casey Alcantara and Ruben Gonzales against Petros and Markos Kalovelonis, followed by the reverse singles between Stefanos and Patrombon, and Petros against Lim.
The tie matchup is the first time in 29 years that the Filipino Cuppers will be up against a non-Asian squad since the PH team, then bannered by Felix Barrientos, faced Sweden in the 1991 World Group Qualifiers.
