Baisa, Divinagracia dominate PPS Bacolod

MANILA, Philippines — Brice Vincent Baisa crushed the opposition with his brand of play, posting another twin kill even as local ace Ma. Hannah Divinagracia lorded it over the girls’ field in the PPS-PEPP National tennis juniors championships at the Helvetia and Panaad courts in Bacolod last Sunday.

Baisa, ranked No. 8 in 16-U play, trounced second seed Kurt Barrera, 6-3, 6-2, in the quarters, routed No. 5 Kirby Ramacho, 6-1, 6-0, then upended top seed Ariel Cabaral, 6-2, 7-6(2), to clinch the crown in the Group 2 tournament presented by Dunlop.

The rising Puerto Princesa, Palawan star then held off Cabaral, 7-5, 3-6, 10-4, in the 18-U semis, then repeated over Barrera, 6-2, 6-2, to match his two-title romps in the Iloilo and Roxas City stops of the country’s longest-talent search put up by Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

The three PPS-PEPP tournaments also served as part of Baisa’s tune-up for his first International Tennis Federation tournament – the ITF Junior Circuit in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Feb. 4-12.

The top-ranked Divinagracia stamped her class in the  16-U division, foiling Jana Diaz, 6-2, 6-4, in the finals then as the No. 2 seed, rapped No. 1 Jufe-Ann Cocoy, 6-2, 6-3, in the 18-U title clash.