The hand of God

Asian Tennis Federation director for junior events and Philippine Tennis Association vice president for international affairs Ajay Pathak has a lot to be thankful for. He lives a charmed life and owes it all to God.

Born in India, Pathak came to Manila in 1976 almost by accident. He was then a writer for an Indian sports magazine and his editor asked if he wanted to attend an advertising congress here.

“Our advertising director was on leave so I went in his place,” recalled Pathak, now 60. “I met a Filipina, Claudita Cagatan, whom I fell in love with. After the congress, I went back to India but I couldn’t take my mind off Claudita. I returned to Manila to marry her then we lived in India. Eventually, we decided to settle in Manila. I started from scratch making a living in the Philippines. Little by little, we managed to get by.”

In 1987, Pathak’s wife died. He later remarried Amanda Gallega and they’ve now been together for 19 years. They have two children Philip, slowly taking over the family’s export business, and Em-Em who trained three years in Australia as a national team swimmer and is graduating from Miriam College next month.

Today, the Pathaks live in Subic. He remains active in tennis and is credited for conceptualizing the Asian under-13 circuit that has spawned several world-rated players, including Niño Alcantara of Cagayan de Oro.

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“The idea behind the under-13 tour is everybody gets to play and nobody loses,” he said. “When we started in 2004, we gathered eight of the best age groupers all over Asia and brought them to Australia to play at least five matches. Now, we’re up to 32 players with everybody getting the chance to play five straight days. It’s not like in regular tournaments where once you lose, you’re done. Our goal is for the players to gain experience. It’s in this age group where the kids develop confidence. We realize as they grow older, they’ll be up against bigger and stronger players from Europe and North America.”

Pathak said a pet project is assembling eight boys and eight girls in the under-18 bracket from Asia to play eight weeks in Europe, starting in May. The tour will include stops at the French Open, the Italian Open and Wimbledon.

Curiously, tennis isn’t Pathak’s bread and butter. But it was the sport that opened doors for Pathak to meet corporate executives who paved the way for his successful export business. Now, he ships container-loads of canned foods to buyers from the Middle East on a regular basis.

However, Pathak said his greatest blessing came when he attended a healing Mass celebrated by Fr. Fernando Suarez recently.

“For over six years, I had difficulty breathing and even a short walk left me short of breath,” said Pathak. “My problem was diagnosed as chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. I was prescribed lots of medicine. I was confined at Medical City for a week last July and 10 days in September.

“Last month, I suffered another acute breathing difficulty episode in Subic and was confined at the St. Jude hospital in Olongapo. I stayed eight days in the hospital and I was totally weak. Early this month, my lung specialist Dr. Liza Llanes-Garcia advised me to consult my cardiologist Dr. Rene Reyes and I checked in at Medical City . After several tests, it was confirmed I had actually suffered a heart attack in Subic . I was advised to get an angiogram as the contraction of my heart was too slow and it could lead to another heart attack.”

Pathak said on the eve of the angiogram, former Davis Cupper Raymond Suarez arranged for him to speak with Fr. Suarez on the phone. On the day of the procedure, doctors were shocked to find absolutely no blockage in his arteries. A few days later, he was released from Medical City and returned to Subic . On the way to Subic on the North Expressway, Pathak saw a streamer announcing a healing Mass with Fr. Suarez at Lakeshore in San Fernando, Pampanga. It was Divine Providence at work.

Without hesitation, Pathak decided to attend the Mass. “For the first time, I saw hundreds of people lining up to be prayed over by Fr. Suarez,” he recounted. “About 150 people stood in line at a time and close to 90 percent were slain, meaning they fell down after being touched by Fr. Suarez. I saw the crippled walk and the sick healed. I, too, was slain and for a few seconds, I lost consciousness. When I came to, I felt at peace with myself. It was a wonderful feeling.”

And when he got home, Pathak said he never felt better. “I used to struggle taking a bath because I couldn’t even scrub myself without getting tired,” he related. “But now, I can even take long baths. After all these years, I can finally enjoy bathing again. Before, I would get exhausted just taking the 35 steps from our garage to our bedroom. Now I can do it without a problem, three to four times a day. I’m thinking of starting to play golf and maybe later, I’ll go back to tennis.”

Pathak said he is convinced that God, through Fr. Suarez, has healed him.

“The only logical explanation is that during the healing Mass, the spirit of the Lord came to me through Fr. Suarez,” he said. “I am living proof of the extraordinary healing powers of Fr. Suarez. He is a blessing to our country and the world, truly a man of God with a magical touch. I thank all those who prayed for me during my critical illness and will always remain indebted to my good friend, Raymond, for being the vital link to Fr. Suarez.”

For details on Fr. Suarez’ healing Masses, contact Aileen Galang at tel. Nos. 842-3794 and 842-3772.