Abarquez survives Abadia to claim DRB tennis crown

CEBU, Philippines - Carcar’s pride Israel “RJ” Abarquez bested Kennex Abadia in a three-set thriller to bag the inaugural championship of the 1st DRB Men’s Open Tennis Tournament yesterday at the Alta Vista Golf and Country Club.

Abadia of Naga started hot as he took the first set in dominating fashion, 6-1.

However, the gritty Abarquez showed a never-say-die attitude to bounce back with a close 7-6 win and forge a rubbermatch.

The thrill continued in the last set as both players displayed championship caliber performances, but Abarquez, the tournaments topseed, boosted his confidence and made it all the way to a 10-8 victory over Abadia.

“It was a tough match. I was not in good shape during our first encounter that’s why the result was bad. But I’m glad that I was able to recover from the setback and was able to have a deciding set against Kennex. I thought I could not make it since Kennex was a tough opponent. But I challenged and motivated myself to win since that’s my goal,,” said Abarquez.

Abarquez pocketed P10,000, Abadia received P5,000.-     (FREEMAN NEWS)