Top-seed Johnny Arcilla pulled himself closer to a fourth straight title in the Cebuana Lhuillier Tennis Circuit as he beat seventh-seed Alexander Lazaro, 6-2, 6-4, in the semifinals yesterday at the Baseline Recreation Center.
With the victory, Arcilla forged a finals date with an old rival in second-seed Vicente Alberto Anasta of the Philippine Army.
Anasta defeated fourth-seed Patrick John Tierro, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, in the other semifinal pairing.
Incidentally, Anasta and Arcilla are teammates in the Philippine team to the Davis Cup.
Arcilla leads their head-to-head matchup with Anasta, 4-1.
“I will just have to hold my serve and be patient so that I won’t commit unnecessary errors in the finals,” said Arcilla.
Anasta, on the other hand, believes he can defeat the top-seeded Arcilla, especially in a claycourt.
“I have already defeated him before. I just have to be cautious all the time,” said Anasta. “I am eyeing an upset against him.”
Anasta said his advantage is that he is in better condition compared to Tierro.
If Arcilla wins, he will become the first competitor to complete a four-peat in the prestigious tournament, which offers P40,000 and 300 ranking points to the champion.
Aside from the singles competition, Anasta and Tierro are also competing in the doubles division.
Anasta is paired up with Ronard Joven while Tierro and Arcilla are teammates in the doubles competition.
Both pairs have managed to reach the semifinals of the category.
The Arcilla-Tierro tandem will face the pair of Lazaro and Almichael Madrio while Anasta and Joven will go up against the tandem of Kim Ivor Saraza and Roel Capangpangan.