Patrombon slays a Goliath, advances

MANILA, Philippines - Jeson Patrombon took some time before adjusting to the big serve and big forehand of his tall German rival Julian Lenz before hacking out a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory in the boys’ singles opener of The Junior Championships-Wimbledon Saturday at the All England Club in London.

Seeded 13th in the Grade netfest, Patrombon initially struggled in the face of the 6-foot-3 Lenz’s effective grasscourt tactic of unleashing wide serve and big forehand to the open court then putting pressure at the net as he yielded the first set.

Lenz put Patrombon into a deep hole in the second, going up 4-2, but the Filipino began to challenge the German’s big serve and big forehand, eventually reading his rival’s serve to catch up and steal the set.

The 18-year-old Iligan pride clawed back from a 0-40 deficit to break Lenz in the first game of the third set, then held serve the rest of the way to complete the come-from-behind, inspiring victory.

“Jeson won his very first important win in Wimbledon and this will definitely boost his confidence,” said coach Manny Tecson, whose ward dropped his first-round assignment when he made his debut in the grand slam tournament last year.

But the breakthrough triumph came with a prize as Patrombon hurt his right foot in executing a running shot on the forehand side at match point.

“He tried to slide it out to get to the ball and at the last minute, his foot got stuck in the grass, which put a lot of weight on it. We are now doing icing and we are taking anti-inflammatory for the swelling,” said Tecson.

Patrombon, however, will have a one-day rest as he’s set to play in the second round Monday, giving him time to heal his injured foot. He meets the winner between British Toby Martin and Belgian Kimmer Coppejans.