Veteran Filipino tennis player Marvin Espina parlayed his experience into an easy 6-1, 6-1 victory over Bassam Khoury in a headline Class A singles first round match in the 33rd BSF Desert Classic Tennis Tournament at the InterContinental courts in the City Center.
Espina, using his power forehand, moved his rival from side to side in the match that lasted an hour and a half and marked by long rallies because both are consistent baseline players.
In a battle of rated Saudi junior players, Abdulrahman Azzam, 17, eliminated 15-year-old Faisal, Rebdi 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 in a Class C third round match.
It was an exciting match with both players showing consistency from the baseline.
Azzam won the first set with his down-the-line shotm, but in the second set Rebdi managed to play consistently from the baseline.
In the 3rd set it was very tight for both players but the Azzam leaned on experience to win the match.
First round action in over 45 singles also got under way, while the Class B singles entered the second round and Class A reached the round-of-16.
Banque Saudi Fransi is the major sponsor of this longrunning and biggest tennis tournament in the Kingdom.
Power Horse, DELTAZ Marketing, SGB, Gautier, Al Mutlaq Furniture and Air France-KLM are co-sponsors.
Results:
Class A singles 1st round —
Sulaiman Al Qasem beat Awad Otaibi 6-4, 6-2; Osama Mousa beat Abdullah Al Amri 6-2, 6-2; Yassir Bouyahya beat Sergio Cerda 6-2, 6-4; Mohamed Sughayer beat Bander Nahis 6-3, 6-3;
Asadullah beat Irfan Malik 6-0, 6-2; Ariel Mariano beat Jovel Espina by default; Marvin Espina beat Bassam Khoury 6-1, 6-1; Fadi Zamjaoiu beat Abdulrahman Al Azzam 6-1, 6-1; Bader Omraqn beat Mohamed Moteb 6-2, 6-4; Abdulrahman Dayel beat Omar Abdo 6-4, 6-1
Class A singles round of 16 —
Fahad Al Saad beat Abdulraman Al Qasem 6-2, 7-5; Richard Ravel beat Osama Mousa 6-0, 6-1; Yassir Bouyahya beat Mohamad Sughayer 6-1, 6-1; Abdulmalik Borsais beat Asadullah by default; Mohamed Najeh beat Ariel Mariano 6-0, 6-2; Fadi Zamjaoiu beat Bader Omran 6-3, 6-3; Abdulrahman Dayel beat Omar Thaqib by default
Class B singles 2nd round — Bandar Al Anazi beat Mohamed Afifi 6-1, 6-1; Saud Hosinan beat Ahmad Bitar 6-2, 6-2; Ruben Denopol beat Rabee Al Kadi 6-2, 6-1; Mohamad Al Ahmari beat Meshal Humaidan by default; Salman Harissi beat Abdulrahman Al Azzam by default; Arnel Pineda beat Masour Rebdi 3-6, 6-3, 6-2; Darwin Suson beat Asraf Abdulfattah by default; Sulaiman Al Qasem beat Abdulrahman Khaled by default; Diyaa Khateeb beat Osama MOusa 6-1, 6-0; Bassam Khoury beat Mark Jorolan 6-2, 6-0; Yashar Sheet beat Awad Otaibi by default; Jebreel Aseeri beat Bander Nahis by default; Bader OMran beat Muath Batta 6-0, 6-0; Ariel Mariano beat Asadullah 7-5, 6-1; Ahmad Hussan beat Mohamad Taef 6-1, 6-0
Jovel Espina beat Nasser Harbi 6-2, 7-6
Class C singles 3rd round — Bander Nahis beat Yousof Frialde 6-1, 6-1; Ruben Denopol beat Safar Sharani 6-1, 6-3: Khalid Diamla beat Abdulrahman Ismail 6-0, 6-1; Mohamad Ahmari beat Sang Lee 6-1, 6-0; Abdulrahman Azzam beat Faisal Rebdi 6-4, 5-7, 6-4; Abdulrahman Sughayer beat Abdullah Ahmari 6-1, 6-2; Mansour Rebdi beat Abdulaziz Alsheikh 6-2, 7-5; Cerda Farra beat Hirvonen Teo 6-3, 6-1; Adel Rayes beat Saud Hosinan by default; Nasser harbi beat Omar Abdo 7-5, 6-2; Najeh Dawwas beat Mohamed Batta 6-2, 6-3; Diyaa Khateeb beat Muzzad Azzam 6-3, 6-3; Nasser Rashed beat Rodel Cruzada 6-0, 6-1; Mohamed Hosinan beat Osama Mousa 6-3, 6-2; Ronald Doloriel beat Azaam Ameen 6-0, 6-2; Khalid Bahli beat Seraj Ali by default
Over 45 singles first round — Yslam Ashram beat jean Louis Catherine by default; Cecilio Llavares beat Mohamed Batta 6-0, 6-1; Salim Bitar beat Barry Twomey 6-0, 6-0; Mario Sagnit beat Elizaldi Chin 6-1, 6-4; Saleh Zahrani beat Carl Shead 6-4, 6-3; Ronald Sederiosa beat Young Suk Yang 6-2, 6-2; Christian Barabas beat Sharani 6-4, 7-5; Ed Dinsay beat Najeh Dawwas 6-1, 6-1
Edwin Ignacio beat Yslam Ashram 6-4, 6-0