Olivarez rallies past Damian, sets up title clash with Tangub

MANILA, Philippines — Eric Olivarez overcame a second-set stumble to reassert his dominance over Noel Damian, scoring a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 victory to book his place in the finals of the Mayor Edwin Olivarez National Open Tennis Championships yesterday at the Olivarez Sports Center in Sucat.

Standing between Olivarez and the championship crown is Eric Jay Tangub, who secured the other finals berth with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over unranked Richard Bautista.

Olivarez and Tangub will dispute the title and the top P100,000 prize when they clash at 9 a.m. today in the P415,000 tournament, which features the country’s leading campaigners alongside a promising crop of emerging talents.

Olivarez reached the championship round after beating David Abordo, 6-4, 6-1, overpowering Marraphael Teng, 6-2, 6-3, and routing veteran Vicente Anasta, 6-1, 6-1. Tangub, meanwhile, opened his campaign with a 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Gurkan Nasilbilirsen, followed by a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over James Aquino and a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Loucas Fernandez.