By MARK REY MONTEJO
Jessica Agra is expected to have her hands full when she takes on some of the best in the Pro Women’s event of the Asia Pacific Padel Tour (APPT) in Bali, Indonesia next week.
The 32-year-old Agra, who is a lawyer by profession, is set for a busy schedule as she hopes to tighten her grip at the No. 2 spot of the APPT rankings.
The former SCU standout leapfrogged to the second spot from a low as 11 after a couple of semifinal finishes in the APPT in Phuket, Thailand two weeks ago.
Agra accumulated 2380 points just behind ranked No. 1 Patricia Garcia Calderaro (2600) of Spain in the Asia-Pacific rankings and ahead of Indonesian Beatrice Gumulya (2200), Spanish Maria Mayoral Estrada (2000) and Portuguese Constanza Kokorelis (1600).
“Next week I will be competing in Bali, Indonesia, and then the APPT will hold another one in Indonesia in September, two tournaments in Singapore in October, one in Japan in November, and then the Masters in Dubai in December,” said Agra during the Tuesday’s PSA Forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, Smart/PLDT, and ArenaPlus, the leading sports entertainment gateway in the Philippines.
With her hectic calendar ahead, Agra opted to set her day job as in-house counsel aside to focus on the preparations for the competitions.
“I used to work as an in-house counsel which meant I had to go to the office Monday to Friday. Ngayon po since I’m concentrating on padel din po, I’d like to balance both,” said Agra, daughter of Atty. Al, the Philippine Obstacle Sports Federation president.
“I stopped being an in-house counsel and now I’m just doing my own practice po, so hopefully I can handle clients at my own time din po, because I actually practice entertainment and sports [law],” she added.
A sport achiever since her youth, Agra was a former junior tennis champion in ITF doubles at age 14.
In her collegiate days, Agra continued her tennis career in NCAA D1 school Santa Clara University and returned to the country and competed for one season in UAAP as a postgraduate athlete of Ateneo.
She transitioned to padel two years ago. This time, she’s taking her new love to a new level.
