Saturday, December 08, 2007 Sisos cruise through first rounds in Langkawi
THE Siso siblings showed total dominance over their opponents yesterday, refusing to concede even a single point in the first rounds of their respective divisions in the Geopark Tennis International Junior Tennis Championships in Langkawi, Malaysia.
Bernardine Niño sailed through an easy first round over less-experienced Mohammad Aris, 8-0, in the Boys 14 division.
“We finished early because he was not a very strong opponent,” said Niño. The match took less than 30 minutes to finish. Niño, however, said that he expects a more difficult challenge in his next assignment against Ahmed Damil of Kilantan, Malaysia.
“I can’t take my next opponent for granted because I have seen him play and he is very good,” Niño added.
Niño also said he wants to make his Malaysian stint a memorable one because this will be his last year in the circuit. Next year, he will go up to an older age bracket.
“I really hope I will win all four singles titles because I will not have this chance again,” said Niño, who is a student of University of San Carlos South Campus.
5 golds
Niño already has five gold medals tucked under his belt, winning the singles and doubles titles in the Selangor and Perlis and the singles title in the Penang leg.
His sister Sally Mae, on the other hand, already has a better medal harvest, winning all the singles and doubles titles in the Girls 14 in the past three legs. Among the Filipinos competing in Malaysia, she is the only one that stands a chance to sweep all titles in her age group.
Yesterday, Sally Mae defeated Aisha Mohd Noh of Negeri Sembelan Malaysia, 8-0. The two faced each other in the quarterfinals of the Girls 12 last year, where Noh still failed to win a single game against the Cebuana.
Sally Mae was cited for her accomplishment in Malaysia last year by the Cebu City government.
Meanwhile, Antique’s Marian Capadocia, who also had a searing run in the past three legs, bombed out of contention with a first round disqualification to Korean Ju Hyae Ji. It was a huge upset for Capadocia, who was given the top seeding following her exploits in the past legs.
The other Cebuano in the competition, Crissiane Kintanar will be plunging into action today. (MCB)
