Filipino top player Treat Huey and Briton Dominic Inglot’s breakthrough run in the US Open men’s doubles came to a heartbreaking end Wednesday at the hands of 10th seeds Ivan Dodig of Croatia and Marcelo Melo of Brazil.
The 16th-seeded Huey and Inglot, who made the quarterfinals for the first time in a Grand Slam event, dropped a 7-5, 6-3 loss in just over an hour.
The match was the first scheduled at Louis Armstrong Stadium and enjoyed television coverage where commentators cited Inquirer reports on Huey’s quest to become the first Filipino to make the semifinal of a Grand Slam.
Local officials and fans were thrilled with the attention given to a Filipino player after TV analysts also mentioned Huey’s mother, Manina San Pedro Huey, who is a United Nations consultant. Huey duplicated Beeyong Sison’s feat in 1981 in the French Open quarters with Swiss partner Markus Guenthardt.
Philippine Tennis Association vice president and Davis Cup administrator Randy Villanueva said he believes Huey, 28, can eventually win a Grand Slam.
Villanueva said Huey will be the country’s best bet in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games along with another United Sates-based player Ruben Gonzales. Marc Anthony Reyes