The vengeance was delayed for two years due to Covid pandemic, but it was worth the wait for Jenaila Rose Prulla.
Taller and sturdier now than three years ago, Prulla dethroned seven-time champion Marian Jade Capadocia with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) win in the Philippine Columbian Association Open finals at its Plaza Dilao indoor shell court.
The 17-year-old San Jose del Monte, Bulacan native displayed incredible grit in a exchange of torrid shots with the 27-year-old Capadocia.
“First and foremost, I improved my fitness so I could have more power and I also had more confidence and courage now compared to the last time when we played,” said Prulla.
“I didn’t feel scared because a lot of people inspired me,” she added.
For her feat, Prulla will become part of the club’s folklore as one if its champions while pocketing the top purse worth P100,000 courtesy of Smart/PLDT, official ball Dunlop, Manila Councilor Jong Isip, San Jose Salt, W. L. Food Products, Palawan Pawnshop and Pagcor.
For Capadocia, she consoled herself with a P50,000 runner-up purse with hope of regaining her old place at the pedestal.
After dropping the first set and trailing, 4-3, in the second, Capadocia fought back and even came a point away from claiming the set and forcing deciding third set where anything can happen.
Prulla, however, didn’t flinch.
In the tiebreaker, Capadocia was up, 3-1, but again, Prulla struck back and knotted it at 3-3.
The beginning of the end came when Capadocia’s forehand return went awry and hit the net that gave Prulla a 4-3 lead.
Worse, the two-time Southeast Asian Games suffered cramps, signaling the end of her reign. And true enough.
