The Philippine Online Chronicles

When Filipinos look back at the 2009 Australian Open, chances are they won't simply remember Serena Williams' 10^th career major or Rafael Nadal's latest championship victory over Roger Federer. Instead, they will remember Francis Casey Alcantara —the very first Filipino to win a hallowed Grand Slam event.

On January 31, 2009, Alcantara and Cheng-Peng Hsieh of Chinese Taipei won the boys' doubles crown at the Melbourne championships, overcoming Mikhal Biryukov of Russia and Yasutaka Uchiyama of Japan 6-4, 6-2. The seventh-seeded pair who just teamed up this year never lost a single set in the tournament and were only pushed to playing tiebreakers twice.

“I don't know what to say. I'm very happy,” Alcantara told the Philippine Daily Inquirer soon after his landmark triumph. “I guess it still has to sink in.”

The Cagayan de Oro native, who will turn 17 on February 4, is the top-ranked tennis player in the country and the 20^th-best player in the International Tennis Federation (ITF) rankings. He dedicated his victory to his father, adding “I'm really proud to be a Filipino. I'm also dedicating the championship to all our countrymen.”

In the earlier rounds, Alcantara and Hsieh defeated Toni Androic of Croatia and Sudarwa Sitaram of India, 6-3, 6-4 and James Chaudry of England and John Morissey of Ireland, 6-0, 6-3, before downing Germans Kevin Krawietz and Dominik Schultz, 6-4, 7-6 in the quarterfinals. They then edged out Austrians Maximilian Neuchrist and Tristan Samuel Weissborn, 7-6, 6-4 in the semifinals before beating Biryukov and Uchiyama for the trophy.

“I like playing with Hsieh,” Alcantara was quoted as saying by philstar.com. “His serve, return and volley are exceptional. His defense is also very good. He gives me lots of chances to poach.” While Alcantara is celebrating his—and his country's—first Grand Slam, Hsieh is enjoying his third. The 17-year-old also won the Australian Open and Wimbledon doubles titles last year.

Alcantara, who was also seeded 10^th in the Melbourne boys' singles draw, is now being eyed for inclusion in the Philippine Davis Cup contingent along with veterans Cecil Mamit and PJ Tierro. The Philippines, long devoid of tennis glory, has been trying to return to the top echelons of group and singles play and Alcantara, considered a singles specialist, is seen as an asset.

“If there are concerns whether he's ripe for it, this would be the answer,” Philippine Tennis Association vice president Randy Villanueva was quoted as saying.

“Nino (Alcantara's nickname) showed he has the talent and heart when he scored the historic win. He has the credentials to become a world class player and I just hope the private sector will see this and help in further developing his skills,” Villanueva was also quoted as saying by gmanews.tv.

According to inquirer.net, the last Filipino youngster to have gone the distance at a Grand Slam was Felix Barrientos, who made the semifinals of the Wimbledon juniors singles in 1985.

Photo: “ More tennis” by Thermodynamix on Flickr.com. Licensed under Creative Commons license number BY-NC-ND-2.0-DEED.EN.