Alcantara and Gonzales bucked an opening set stumble and outhustled Indonesians Christopher Rungkat and Nathan Barki, 2-6, 7-5, 10-5, on their way to the PH team’s third straight gold in the said event.
Tennis players Gonzales, Alcantara rule men's doubles in SEAG
May 13, 2023 02:13 PM
At a glance
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia—Francis Casey Alcantara and Ruben Gonzales retained the country’s gold medal in men’s doubles Saturday, May 13, in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games at the Morodok Techo National Stadium here.
Ruben Gonzales (left) and Francis Casey Alcantara
Alcantara and Gonzales bucked an opening set stumble and outhustled Indonesians Christopher Rungkat and Nathan Barki, 2-6, 7-5, 10-5, on their way to the PH team’s third straight gold in the said event.
In the 2019 Manila edition, Alcantara and Jeson Patrombon claimed the gold while Gonzales teamed up with Treat Huey to rule in the 2021 Hanoi meet.
After earning an opening-round bye, Alcantara and Gonzales went on full throttle to beat Indonesians David and Ignatius Susanto, 6-3, 7-5, before surviving Vietnam’s Dac Tien and Van Phuong Nguyen, 7-6, 6-3.
Meanwhile, Eric Olivarez and Miko Eala finished in the quarters the other day after losing to Rungkat and Barki, 5-7, 6-2, 10-5.
Khim Iglupas and Shaira Rivera also lost their quarters match to Indonesian Aldila Sutjiadi and Jessy Rompies, 6-0, 6-1.
Marian Capadocia, Iglupas, Eala and Eric Olivarez Jr. also lost their singles matches early in the tournament.