John David Velez seeks record PPS tennis ‘treble’

MANILA, Philippines — Local ace John David Velez hopes to draw inspiration from the crowd as he guns for a three-title feat in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala Davao leg age-group tennis circuit which started Thursday at the GSIS Tennis Club.

While the 14-year-old Velez is tipped to duplicate his romp in his age-division and in the 16-U side in last week’s PPS-PEPP stop in Tagum City, he will have his hands full in the premier 18-U category with Sebastian Lhuillier, Bruce Hurtado and EJ Casal expected to foil his bid.

Tenielle Madis, who also won two titles in Tagum, likewise goes for a repeat in the 12- and 14-U sides but against new rivals in the five-day event sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger with Dunlop as the official ball.

“Playing with a high level of confidence and before a hometown crowd, we expect Velez to measure up with the older, seasoned players in the 18-U division,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

Action in other divisions is also expected to be fierce with ranking points also up for grabs in the Group 1 tournament sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines, made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg.