Iggy makes net waves

MANILA, Philippines – Arthur Craig (Iggy) Pantino is slowly coming into his own as a tennis star and will leave tomorrow to join a select ITF Asian traveling team of five boys as the only Filipino on a three-week tour of India.

Pantino, 15, is ranked world No. 290 in the U18 division and from latest indications, his stock is rising. At the China Junior Championships in Beijing last October, Pantino sent shock waves throughout the Asian circuit when he upset world No. 19 Yu Hsiou Hsu of Chinese-Taipei, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 in the quarterfinals. He went on to lose to China’s world No. 6 Wu Yibing, 6-4, 6-0, in the semifinals but gained a load of experience in the process.

“Iggy’s a complete package,” said coach Jun Toledo. “While he’s achieved success as a doubles player with another junior standout Bryan (Otico), I think Iggy is more cut-out for singles. At 15, he’s 5-8 and tall for his age. Not only that, he’s smart, he does well in school and on the court, he knows what to do. You don’t have to teach him point by point because he picks up so easily.”

Toledo said Pantino’s style is something he developed himself. “Iggy has a running shot which reminds me of Novak Djokovic,” said Toledo. “That’s something you don’t teach. It’s all hidden talent. He hits the ball on the run and it ends up a winner. With the backhand, he has a flat delivery just like Djokovic and his ball is difficult to return. Right now, he’s going through the process of development just like Niño Alcantara did, playing in juniors tournaments all over the world. The PTA (Philippine Tennis Academy) is supporting Iggy all the way. I think Iggy will go a long way in his tennis career.”

Toledo said Pantino’s selection to the Asian traveling team is proof that he’s been recognized by the ITF for his potential. The other day, Toledo drove back to Manila after spending the holidays with family in Tarlac to prepare Pantino for the India tour where the first tournament is set in Chandigarh on Jan. 2-7. The second competition will be in New Delhi on Jan. 9-14 and the third in Calcutta on Jan. 16-21.

“The ITF chose U16 players but they’re all playing in U18 Grades 2 and 3 tournaments,” said Toledo. “They’re the best of the best U16 players in Asia.” Pantino will be joined in the tour by players from Taiwan, Syria, Thailand and Kazakhstan. The tour is sponsored by the ITF Grand Slam Development Fund (GSDF).

Last year, Pantino received his first ITF GSDF grant when he was chosen as the only Filipino in a five-man Asian traveling team that played junior tournaments in France, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. The others in the team were players from Korea (two), China and Kyrgyzstan.

Pantino held his own during the Europe tour. “I learned a lot from the trip,” he said. “My most memorable moments were when I upset the fifth seed from Montenegro, 6-4, 6-4 in a tournament and when I made it to the quarterfinals in singles in another tournament. I partnered with Mirgiiaz Mirdzhaliev of Kyrgyzstan to win the doubles championship in Hasselt, Belgium.”

A Grade 8 student at De La Salle Zobel Night School, Pantino got hooked to tennis watching his early heroes Andy Murray and Andy Roddick in action on TV. He was five years old when he held his first racket and his first coach was Manuel Gayon. His father Arturo, a manager of a metal works outfit, and mother Lourdes encouraged him to take tennis seriously. Pantino, the third of four children, was born in Ormoc and moved to Cebu with his family when he was six. At 10, Pantino started to win tournaments in singles and doubles consistently. He was an elementary varsity player at the University of San Carlos in Cebu before moving to La Salle. Pantino said he’s looking forward to playing as a US varsity netter after high school graduation.

Pantino, whose idol is Roger Federer, said two things he’s working on are his lateral movement and consistency in his first serve.

Philippine Tennis Association vice president Randy Villanueva said he has high hopes for Pantino. “I really think he has great potential,” he said. “I’ve been following Iggy since he was nine years old as he was playing in the same category (U10 unisex) then with my daughter who is a year older and Iggy was already No. 1 at the time. Every year, he has reached his goals with flying colors. He has great family support from Cebu and his PTA family is doing a great job with his tennis training and guidance in Manila. He also did very well with his ITF events this year and that was one of the reasons why he was selected to the ITF team playing in India.”