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Bencic stuns No. 1 Osaka

NEW YORK — Naomi Osaka was upset 7-5 6-4 by Belinda Bencic at the US Open on Monday as the Japanese lost her grip on both her title and number one status while the Swiss reached the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows for the second time.

Bencic got off to a bright start on a rainy day in New York, breaking the world number one under the closed roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium, and her superior serving carried the day as she won 82% of her first serve points.

Momentum swung firmly in the 22-year-old Bencic’s direction in the second set when Osaka double faulted to hand the 13th seed a 3-2 lead and the top-seeded Japanese, who appeared to struggle with a troublesome left knee, was unable to recover.

Bencic improved to 3-0 this year against the 21-year-old Osaka, who came through an emotional straight sets win over 15-year-old American Coco Gauff in the third round on Saturday.

Osaka’s defeat means Australia’s Ash Barty, who lost in straight sets to China’s Wang Qiang in the fourth round on Sunday, will regain the world number one spot from the Japanese.

Osaka said that although she was disappointed with Monday’s result she still considered her trip to New York a success.

BIG CHALLENGE
Bencic, who also reached the US Open quarterfinals in 2014 when she was just 17 but has struggled with injuries in recent years, said that taking Osaka’s powerful serve early and keeping her energy up was the key to winning the match.

“I was so excited to come on the court, the challenge could not be bigger so I had to be on top of my game,” she said in an on-court interview.

Despite the lack of a big serve, Bencic played fluently, finishing with 29 winners to just 12 unforced errors and breaking Osaka three times.

Osaka’s loss comes the day after top seed Novak Djokovic fell to another Swiss, Stan Wawrinka.

Next up for Bencic is a meeting with Croatia’s 23rd seed Donna Vekic, who beat Germany’s Julia Goerges 6-7(5) 7-5 6-3 on Louis Armstrong Stadium court earlier on Monday.

RAFA OUTWITS CILIC
Rafa Nadal faced his stiffest challenge yet at the US Open but raised his game to beat Marin Cilic 6-3 3-6 6-1 6-2 on Monday and continue his quest for a fourth Flushing Meadows title.

The second-seeded Spaniard was in cruise control as he took the first set behind some superb serving and stout defence but the big-hitting Croatian battled back to snatch the second.

That was as good as it would get for Cilic, however, the momentum shifting decisively in Nadal’s favour when he jumped in the air to hit a spectacular overhead smash that electrified the crowd.

Cilic would double fault later in the game to give Nadal a 3-1 lead and he would never threaten again on a hot and humid night in New York, with Tiger Woods among the star-studded crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium cheering on the Spaniard.

Nadal fired a forehand winner on match point to seal the victory and make his 40th quarterfinal at a Grand Slam event.

The 33-year-old has had a relatively stress-free time at the tournament so far, dropping just one set and getting a walkover in the second round.

Next up for the 18-time Grand Slam champion is a meeting with Argentine Diego Schwartzman, who toppled Alexander Zverev in their round of 16 clash earlier in the day.

The diminutive Argentine has faced Nadal seven times and lost every meeting but has proven a difficult test in the slams, forcing the Spaniard to go four tough sets at the 2018 Australian and French Opens.

Nadal is on a collision course with third seed Roger Federer and could meet his old rival in Sunday’s final if both players advance. Federer faces Grigor Dimitrov in the quarters on Tuesday. — Reuters

Gilas Pilipinas tries to avert going winless in group play versus Angola

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

WINLESS and already eliminated from the running in the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the Philippine men’s national basketball team tries to finish group play on a high note and have something to build on heading into the classification side of the tournament.

To take on fellow Group D tailender Angola in the scheduled 3:30 p.m. match today at the Foshan International Sports & Cultural Arena in China, Gilas Pilipinas looks to catch a break after two gut-wrenching losses.

Gilas saw its World Cup bid dashed after bowing to world number four Serbia on Monday, 126-67. It was in follow up to the 108-62 defeat it absorbed at the hands of Italy on opening day on Aug. 31.

The twin losses effectively ousted the Philippines from the knockout stages and having to settle for the classification round.

Against Serbia, led by National Basketball Association All-Star Nicola Jokic, Gilas played better than it did versus Italy, where it was flat right at the onset.

The Philippines battled early in the contest, with Paul Lee finding his mark.

Gilas was on top, 9-7, at the 5:39 mark of the opening frame before Mr. Jokic and the Serbian team started to make their move and pull away.

Serbia proved to be too much for the Philippines in the middle quarters, outscoring the latter, 71-35, which pretty much sealed the fate of Gilas.

CJ Perez once again stood tall for the Philippines, top-scoring with 16 points followed by Mr. Lee with 15.

June Mar Fajardo had eight markers while Japeth Aguilar and Robert Bolick finished with seven points each.

Gilas naturalized player Andray Blatche only had five points and four rebounds before fouling out.

The Philippines lamented another tough loss but recognized Serbia was just too much.

“Tough loss. We wanted to make the game close. They’re just the number one team right now. Our goal was just to raise our game to a higher level. Serbia is just too much for us,” said Mr. Lee after the game.

World number 31 Gilas now hopes to have a breakthrough win when it collides with Angola, which is several rungs below it in the world rankings at 39th.

Angola is led in scoring by Carlos Morais and Yanick Moreira.

Philippines versus Angola will be shown live over TV5 and ESPN5.com.

Acclaimed artists rally behind Filipino athletes for SEAG

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

FILIPINO athletes seeing action later this year in the 30th Southeast Asian Games have received a boost from acclaimed performing artists of the land.

Tony awardee Lea Salonga, National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab and Palanca-award winning writer and director Floy Quintos have teamed up to create the theme song for the SEA Games which the country is hosting from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11.

Entitled “We Win As One,” the lyrics were of Mr. Quintos and music was by Mr. Cayabyab.

Ms. Salonga lends the voice and the face in the music video that comes with it.

The theme song was unveiled on Tuesday at The Grand Bar and Lounge of Resorts World Manila, with the artists and SEA Games organizers expressing excitement over the project team-up and support for the athletes.

“The inspiration for the song is in the SEA Games tag itself, ‘We Win As One.’ It’s a big inspiration for me because it talks about not only about our relationship as a community and country but also our relationship with our neighbors. Yes we compete but we win as one,” said Mr. Cayabyab of the SEA Games song.

The Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) shared the when the theme song project was being conceptualized it had no artists in mind but those involved in “We Win As One,” which was also arranged by noted music director and producer Jimmy Antiporda.

“I was excited and I was honored because they asked me [to be part of this],” shared Mr. Cayabyab.

For Ms. Salonga, to represent the country in such a way is both exciting and fun even as she said that she hopes the athletes get inspired from it.

“When I represent the country I make it a point to always put my best foot forward. And this is one of those times and I’m mindful that I bring out only the best. It’s amazing to sing for this kind of arena and I hope the athletes get inspired by it,” Ms. Salonga said.

The 2019 SEA Games is touted to be the biggest to be staged in the Philippines, involving 11,000 athletes and officials from the 11 member nations, 9,000 volunteers, 530 events and 56 sports.

Forty-four venues have been short-listed for the event scattered in different parts of the country, including the world-class facilities at New Clark City in Tarlac.

The last time the country hosted the SEA Games was in 2005.

PVL: Choco Mucho out to halt skid in game versus PetroGazz

HAVING LOST their last two matches, the Choco Mucho Flying Titans try to halt their skid when they take on the PetroGazz Angels in Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Open Conference action today at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.

Set for 2 p.m., the Flying Titans (2-3) seek to move back to the .500 mark in the ongoing PVL tournament against the streaking Angels (3-2).

The last of the losses of Choco Mucho came at the hands of undefeated league-leaders Creamline Cool Smashers in four sets, 25-12, 25-22, 19-25 and 25-18, on Aug. 31.

The duo of Kat Tolentino and Maddie Madayag tried to tow their team to the victory but the veteran crew of Creamline, led by Alyssa Valdez, proved to be too much to handle for Choco Mucho as it bowed to the defeat.

Misses Tolentino and Madayag led the attack of the Flying Titans, finishing with 20 and 13 points, respectively.

Arianna Angustia was the third leading scorer for Choco Mucho with eight points.

Out to add to the struggles of the Flying Titans are the Angels, winners of their last two matches.

The most recent of PetroGazz’s wins was over the Philippine Air Force Lady Jet Spikers, which came in straight sets, 25-16, 25-20 and 25-23, on Sept. 1.

Leading the balanced attack of the Angels were Cherry Nunag and Jovielyn Prado with 10 points each followed by Stephanie Mercado and Jeanette Panaga who chipped in eight apiece.

Happy with the win, PetroGazz hopes it gets to continue to improve and keep rolling.

Meanwhile, playing in the middle game at 4 p.m. are Creamline (6-0) and the PacificTown-Army Lady Troopers (2-2) to be followed by the match at 6 p.m. between the Banko Perlas Spikers (4-2) and BaliPure Purest Water Defenders (2-3). — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

UTP junior netters in Malaysia for ATF 14-and-under tilt

A TEAM of Unified Tennis Philippines (UTP) national junior tennis players are in Malaysia to represent the country in the Asian Tennis Federation (ATF) 14-and-under series.

The team, composed of Exequiel Jucutan, Joewyn Pascua, Alexa Milliam, and Marielle Jarata are hopeful that they will be able to repeat or even best the performance of last year’s team.

“Our goal as a team is to consistently play our best, not just aim to be champions but to show that we can make our mark in international competitions.” said Marielle, the team’s youngest player.

“We’ve seen how these kids are on the Philippine courts and I’m confident that they are at par with their opponents who will come from different nations. I wish them good luck and expect them to make our country proud,” said UTP president Jean Henri Lhuillier.

The UTP national team members were selected through a national ranking system. UTP is an all-inclusive, non-stock, non-profit sports organization founded and supported by some of the country’s biggest tennis patrons and aficionados whose mission is to develop fresh talents who will represent the Philippines in international competitions.

Eye-opener

Dropping to its second defeat in as many games in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in China on Monday, Gilas Pilipinas has been eliminated from the running and relegated to the classification side of the global hoops spectacle.

And while it is totally not surprising considering the kind of competition the Philippine men’s national basketball team is up against in the Worlds, still to see Gilas get bamboozled the way it has had in the tournament — with an averaging losing margin of 52.5 points — is in equal parts saddening and disconcerting.

No doubt basketball in the Philippines in large part has significant grown throughout the years but the ongoing World Cup has been an eye-opener that vis-à-vis the rest of the world we still are a long ways to go to being truly at par with the best in the sport.

In Asia we are holding our own all right. Outside of it? Our game against Italy and Serbia pretty much answers that.

That being said, may the hard lessons of the 2019 World Cup not go unnoticed to each and everybody basketball stakeholder in the land.

Be it the need to have a more ample time to prepare or developing the “right” players for the job and giving them the proper exposure or crafting a sustainable and long-term basketball program, something has to happen because obviously what we have right now is not making the cut.

Sure it will take a long time. In our case may be a very long time. But it is something that has to happen if we are to further grow and in keep step with the rest of the world in terms of hoops.

Every nation goes through that. Heck even the Americans, long considered the barometer in the sport, have had to go through such “recalibration” in different junctures to keep the kind of stature they have.

Our Asian and Oceania neighbors — China, Japan, Korea, Chinese-Taipei Iran, Australia and New Zealand — went and still going through it and it is about time we do some fine-tuning of our own.

We may be out of the running for the higher rounds but our World Cup campaign is not over and there are still games left to be played, beginning with our final Group D assignment against Angola today.

May Gilas use these remaining games to build up and learn further moving forward.

Still believe in the team and what it wants to accomplish. Laban lang Pilipinas!

 

Michael Angelo S. Murillo has been a columnist since 2003. He is a BusinessWorld reporter covering the Sports beat.

msmurillo@bworldonline.com

Preparation

Belinda Bencic isn’t one to exert pressure on herself. She has learned not to, having seen the pitfalls of great expectations both as an accomplished junior and as a well-traveled pro. She is, if nothing else, pragmatic, and especially in her assessment of self. For example, she concedes that she has “less talent and touch” than compatriot and mentor Martina Hingis, five-time major titleholder and daughter to former coach Melanie Molitor. No doubt, her nuanced view of her potential stems from her roller-coaster experience. She had ups early on, including a quarterfinal-round appearance in the 2014 United States Open and two Women’s Tennis Association Tour titles the next year. Then she had downs, among them wrist surgery in 2017 and its protracted period of convalescence.

Creditably, Bencic has managed to retain her love of the game throughout; she sees the adversities she has faced as necessary for growth. “I think all true athletes have to overcome obstacles, injuries, just tough times. I think it made me a stronger person, better player.” Indeed. Which is why she seems to thrive in the grandest stages, and against players with far stellar resumes. Just yesterday, she halted the US Open run of defending singles champion Naomi Osaka with a decisive 7-5, 6-4 fourth-round thrashing that had her dictating points from the get-go. Not coincidentally, it was her fourth straight victory, and third this year, over the World Number One.

Ask Bencic, and she’d say her biggest asset is her ability to counter her opponent’s strengths or, at the very least, render them ineffective. Yesterday, she managed to rein in Osaka’s power with well-timed and -placed shots. That she had thrice as many double faults as aces — exactly the multiplier her opponent boasted of, but in the opposite application — underscored her capacity to construct points until opportunities to strike presented themselves. She was so patient and precise — if decisive, relentless in her intent to crowd the baseline and take the ball early — that the game looked easy for her.

In truth, much of Bencic’s success on the court stems from her steadfast preparation long before the actual matches. If she’s aware of what she needs to do, it’s because she has scouted the competition herself. She certainly paid attention to Osaka’s masterful performance against Coco Gauff in the previous round, personal taking it in from the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Needless to say, she figures to do the same in the run-up to her meeting with Donna Vekic, another oft-injured player also on the comeback trail. “It’s great that one of us will be in the semifinals,” she said, not needing to note that she’s already laying the groundwork to claim the privilege.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Launchgarage hosts Malaysian startups with EXPAND Philippines

For the second year in a row, local tech accelerator Launchgarage hosted EXPAND Philippines, a structured three-week market access program for Malaysian companies seeking to test and validate their products and services in the country.

In partnership with the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and UnionBank, the program culminated in a Demo Day taking place on Aug 30, in UnionBank Plaza, where six Malaysian companies showcased their products and services.

“We are happy to host MDEC and look forward to opportunities to enable foreign companies entering the Philippines. Through collaboration we can Tech Up the Philippines,” said Arvie de Vera, UnionBank’s senior vice president and Fintech Business Group head.

This year’s cohort was a collection of seasoned entrepreneurs running late-stage companies that underwent a month-long selection process, an intensive week of mentor-led webinar sessions about the local ecosystem, online introductions to key stakeholders in their respective industries, and an on-site immersion comprising of deal flow facilitation between them and potential investors, clients and strategic partners in the Philippines.

Following last year’s successful pilot, Jojo Flores, COO of Launchgarage, announced in his welcome address a five-year partnership with MDEC which will enable seamless cross-border collaboration as the group’s exclusive partner running various market access programs. “We are proud to announce that we have inked an exclusive deal with our Malaysian counterparts to continue co-hosting these market access programs, which provides value and accelerates their validation process when entering the Philippine market,” he said.

Keasavan Hari Krishnan, market engagement lead of MDEC’s Growth Ecosystem Development group, said “the cross border collaboration between Launchgarage Philippines and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) has created market access opportunities for Malaysian startups to expand their network and services to the Philippines. MDEC is extremely honored to have been part of these startups expansion into the Philippines.”

Also at last week’s event was Hon. Arth Bryan Celeste, Mayor of Alaminos City, Pangasinan who said he is eager to integrate various projects from the crop of companies into his ecosystem and avail of services that would benefit his constituents.

The 2019 cohort features a diverse set of elite-tier companies which include: 

  • Persuasion Technologies, a business intelligence and marketing analytics servicing platform for retailers and ecommerce sites, 
  • CK Group, an Integrated Property Marketing Agency specializing in digital design solutions using the latest media and visualization technology, 
  • Sometime by Asian Designers, an e-commerce bag and accessories specialist company that co-designs with very select established Asian designers and icons to conceptualize and produce exclusive and iconic designer bags, 
  • NEXPlatform, a data-driven Proptech company that provides smart marketing solutions to help property developers digitalise their processes and improve customer experience, 
  • Accendo, a Talent Experience platform designed to help with deep people analytics and career pathing 
  • and SonicBoom, an all-in-one open payment terminal for parking, vending machines and retail stores.

Hospitality startup ZEN Rooms now the biggest hotel chain in Metro Manila

Indonesian hospitality startup ZEN Rooms has just recently opened over 400 new rooms with its recent partnership with Selah Hotels making it the biggest hotel chain in Metro Manila.

After operating for the past four years, ZEN Rooms now has over 4,500 rooms across the Philippines top 50 destinations and 10,000+ rooms across Southeast Asia on its platform. With its constant expansion, the company is set to be in 70 cities by the end of 2019, adding top destinations all over the country.

The company fully manages the newly opened ZEN Rooms Selah Lofts in Harrison St., Pasay City with 205 budget rooms. Just above the property is ZEN Rooms Selah Pods for mid-range accommodation of 108 cozy rooms with access to the rooftop infinity pool with a 360 view of the city’s skyline. For a more premium stay, there’s ZEN Premium Selah Garden Pasay on Park Avenue with close to 100 rooms.

Michael Raquiza, Country Manager of ZEN Rooms Philippines said, “When ZEN Rooms expanded here in 2015, our goal was just to fix the fragmented budget hotel industry,” said Michael Raquiza, countyr manager of ZEN Rooms. “Now, four years later, being the largest hotel chain in the Philippines… we are here to build relationships with hotel owners and support local businesses. We believe that our partnership with hotels like the Selah group exemplifies just that. Together, we improve value-for-money so that our guests can travel more and pay less.”

Jeff Thomas, Managing Director of Selah Hotels, added, “ZEN Rooms has been very effective in terms of tapping the online market and selling our rooms to a wider audience online.”

CFA Society Philippines to hold fourth investment summit for Gen Z workforce

Local investor organization CFA Society Philippines organizes its 4th Philippine Junior Finance and Investment Summit, targeting a growing workforce of tech-savvy Gen Zers entering the investment landscape.

“We began this journey towards equipping of future finance professionals six years ago when we launched the first Philippine Junior Finance and Investment Summit. And through the years, especially with the development in our technology and media, we saw how the desirability for equipped finance and investment professionals only grew,” said Cristina Arceo, CFA Society Philippines’ Chairman of the Board of Trustees.

The upcoming summit, with the theme “Measure Up to Level Up” will take place on Sept. 7 at the SMX Convention Center Manila. This whole-day event is set to cater to more than 3,000 students and industry experts, with speakers including Nick Pollard, Managing Director of Asia Pacific CFA Institute; Emilio B. Aquino, Chairperson of Securities and Exchange Commission; and Emilio Neri Jr., Lead Economist and Vice President of the Bank of the Philippine Islands.

“As the world is rapidly changing, and since soon we are bound to leave it in the hands of this new generation of wiser and informed people, CFA believes it is essential that we engage and provide them the tools they need to lead and set the path straight towards success,” Arceo said. She encourages young people–students and young professionals–to attend this event so they can further hone the set of skills they have in order for them to advance in their personal career and financial wellness.

Learn more about the upcoming event here.

Spotlight: Dr. Liau Kui Hin of Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital talks about Digestive Cancers

 

 

Manufacturing purchasing managers’ index of select ASEAN economies, August (2019)

BUSINESS CONDITIONS for factories in the Philippines improved “at a moderate rate” in August, with firms raising production “only modestly as new order growth fell from July levels,” according to results of a monthly survey IHS Markit conducts for Nikkei, Inc. that were released on Monday. Read the full story.

Manufacturing purchasing managers’ index of select ASEAN economies, August (2019)

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