By MARK REY MONTEJO
Veteran Francis Casey Alcantara and Thai Maximus Jones bounced back from lethargic second set to beat Yamato Sueoka and Thantub Suksumrarn, 6-3, 4-6, 10-8, and advance to the final of ITF M15 Nakhon Si Thammarat in Thailand Saturday, July 13.
Alcantara, 32, banked on his wide experiences as he and 19-year-old partner recovered from a second set hiccup to prevail in one and a half hour contest and earn another trip to the final.
Their victory arranged a finals duel with unseeded India’s Rishi Reddy and Dhakshineswar Suresh in the tournament which offers $15000 (roughly P876,202) prize money.
India’s Reddy and Suresh escaped past their compatriots Adil Kalyanpur and Vishnu Vardhan, 6-4, 7-6 (8), to enter the final.
The SEAG multi-medalist is seeking redemption after he and Jones yielded to the Indian pair of Kalyanpur and Vardhan, 6-3, 6-2, last weekend.
It was the second runner-up finish for the Davis Cup veteran this season.
In advancing to the semis, Alcantara and Jones beat New Zealand’s Isaac Becroft and Thai Pawit Sornlaksup, 6-2, 6-2, in the opening round and then securing a 3-6, 6-3, 10-6 win over Thailand’s Krittin Koaykul and Jirat Navasirisomboon in the quarterfinals.
The Filipino-Thai duo exhibited fine chemistry in the first frame as they quickly seized a 4-1 lead en route to the set win, but it was a different scenario in the next set.
