ALEX Eala and Francis 'Nino' Alcantara marked their reunion with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Singapore’s Daniel Abadia and Wei Choo to reach the mixed doubles semifinals in tennis at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand on Monday.
Just two hours after putting away Malaysian Shihomi Leong, 6-3, 6-1, in her women's singles debut, Eala teamed up with veteran Alcantara to put away another guaranteed medal for the Philippines in tennis.
READ Alex Eala cruises past Malaysian to reach SEA Games semifinals
“It’s always fun to play with Alex. Parang ginawa namin sa Asian Games, just having fun, we’ve got nothing to lose,” Alcantara told reporters after the one-sided match.
The pair said they're taking it one step at a time as they aim to improve on their bronze-medal finish from the 2022 SEA Games in Vietnam, which they can do when they see action in the semifinals in Bangkok.
The longtime partners didn't take long to get their act together, taking the first set before opening the second with a two-game cushion.
The Singaporeans pulled to within a game at 4-3, but Eala and Alcantara quickly regrouped to close out the match, 6-3.
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