Johnny Arcilla rode on a pair of fiery starts to overwhelm Charles Kinaadman, 6-2, 6-4, and capture the singles crown in the Brookside Open National Tennis Championships at the Brookside Hills courts in Cainta, Rizal late Saturday.
The 41-year-old Davis Cup veteran broke Kinaadman in the opening game of each set, cruising to victory in the first then thwarting his 24-year-old rival in the next to fashion out the straight-set win in a big follow-up to his title exploits in Puerto Princesa and San Carlos, Negros Occidental.
Teaming up with Ronard Joven, Arcilla completed a sweep in the week-long event, sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala, Rep. Jack Duavit, BHTC President Allan del Castillo, PNP Dir. Gen. Oscar Calderon (ret.), Gen. Louizo Ticman (ret.) and Selective Security Services, claiming the doubles crown on a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Kinaadman and Jose Maria Pague last Friday.
The durable Arcilla, who foiled No. 3 Vicente Anasta, 6-1, 1-6, 6-2, in the semis, also broke Kinaadman in the seventh game of the first set in shutout fashion while holding serve four times to seize control of the title clash in the event presented by Dunlop.
Down 0-3 in the next frame, Kinaadman, who stopped Arcilla in the semis then went on to capture the Gov. Jubahib Cup crown last September, broke back in the fourth then held serve to pull within one game. But Arcilla, 42, banked on his experience to frustrate Kinaadman, battling back from 0-30 down in the sixth game and forcing a deuce before winning the next two points to barely escape for a 4-2 lead.
The fourth-ranked Kinaadman, who bundled out second seed Pague, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, in the Final Four, also pulled through in a deuce game in the next but Arcilla dominated the next to keep his rival at bay before the duo traded serves, paving the way for the latter’s victory in one-hour and 27 minutes in the event which served as part of the PPS-PEPP circuit put up by Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.
Next up is the Zentro Open on Dec. 6-12 in Apalit, Pampanga while the season-ending Dagitab Open will be held Dec. 15-22 in Naga, Cebu.
