JEDDAH, 14 March 2003 — The challenge appears compelling and the battle for supremacy is thrown wide open to the 45 teams from various tennis clubs in Jeddah that will soon join the forthcoming Malaysia Airlines Tennis Cup-2003 which is set to start at the Al-Bilad tennis courts this coming March 21. Perennial tournament-dominant clubs Expresspoints, BCJ, Pogmatch, Hidada, Skab, TPST and Lockheed are out of contention and opted to farm out their players to other teams, while new clubs bolstered their teams with new recruits and being recipients of player transfers. The bigger-known tennis clubs are keeping low profile this time due to depletion in their player ranks that is brought about with the present vacation period of the year especially for the expatriates, and due to lack of corporate sponsors. “Nevertheless, despite this crunch period of the year, the 45 team entries is beyond expectation”, says ASTEC (the Association of Tennis Clubs), the prime mover of this tournament.
The tournament is the event that the players of SG Tennis Club and Elaf Tennis Club are waiting and consistently preparing for, which brought and formed them into in a record 4 teams each of their own. SG have another one in collaboration with Al-Bilad Tennis Club. SG select-team figured in a title showdown in the recently concluded Siyanco-DPA Tennis Tournament, and another of their teams are in the thick of the top fights in the on-going AFTPA team tennis, a minor tournament that precedes the Malaysia Airlines Tennis Cup. The SG teams of Albert Reyes and Lorna Moreno, who engineered a massive recruitment of experienced players in all categories, appear headed for a breakthrough in their title campaign in the forthcoming Malaysia Airlines Tennis Cup — 2003; while the Elaf team of ASTEC-founder Jun Atienza are brimming with confidence for his team’s tussle in the upper category B1B.
A new and fast-emerging LA Tennis Club, managed by Lope Licera, rose to the challenge by committing 3 teams and another joint team with Tetrapak, and are generally picked to figure out in the top echelon of ASTEC tennis on account of absorbing the services of former BCJ core players led by Francis Idjao. Tetrapak, led by Rodel Ricafort, also poised for big time tennis in Category C with their original lineup in tact. SRL of Royce Legarda, coming up with at least 2 teams, are also likely to join the fray for championship slot in this ASTEC tournament.
The Cabalens, under the leadership of Dennis Manese, sprang up as a new team to watch, having been making waves on top of team standing by amassing a 4-0 over-all in the on-going AFTPA games. The Pampango-speaking Filipinos, will raise this time the sole banner for the sports-loving ethnic Filipinos in the Malaysia Airlines Tennis Cup, while BISA of the Ilocanos and BCJ of the Bicolanos preferred to stay on the sideline. The G-Force, another new tennis group that is packed with solid team players out of Rabigh and Shoaiba tennisters, are a power to reckon with 2 squads in Category C. SPTC will send 3 teams, 1 of which combined with Dallah Tennis Club under the banner of Malaysia Airlines Team C, and seemed firm on their sight for trophies. The Garuda C & B2 teams of Indonesia will be around to provide stiff resistance, so with the KAIA-B1, APO-B2 and Toyota C, JPTC-Siyanco, and Boxmakers.
Meanwhile, ASTEC announced that Unilever Co. has verbally agreed to co-sponsor the tournament by providing Lipton Ice Tea as the official soft drinks of the tournament. ALJ-Toyota, Said Bawasir Trading, Harry Ramden’s Restaurant have verbally agreed to support the tournament.
