Alcantara wins doubles title at ITF M15 Nonthaburi

FILIPINO tennis standout Francis Casey “Niño” Alcantara added another international doubles title to his belt after teaming up with Thailand’s Pawit Sornlaksup to win the ITF M15 Nonthaburi doubles championship in Thailand on Sept. 5.

The Alcantara-Sornlaksup duo battled Maan Kesharwani and Manish Sureshkumar of India, 7-6(4), 5-7, 10-8, in a close fight at the ALM x IMPACT Tennis and Sports Center.

After taking the opening set in a tiebreak, the Filipino-Thai pair faced a deciding super tiebreak after the Indian pair won the second set. Mr. Alcantara and Mr. Sornlaksup surged to an 8-3 lead in the decider before holding off a late comeback to close out the championship, 10-8.

The Nonthaburi title marks another strong international result for Mr. Alcantara, who entered the tournament after winning the Gentry Open doubles title in Bulacan with Filipino-American Christopher Papa the previous week.

The veteran doubles specialist, formerly ranked No. 162 in the world in men’s doubles, continues to build momentum on the international circuit. Mr. Alcantara is also the first Filipino junior doubles Grand Slam champion, having won the 2009 Australian Open boys’ doubles title.

Following his latest championship run, Mr. Alcantara will reunite with Mr. Papa for back-to-back ATP Challenger events in Vietnam over the next two weeks.