JEDDAH — SCTC and ABTC-Taif teams will meet in the Ladies Division HMX Category finals after a grueling double round-robin event, while in the Men's Division LMX Category, four teams have booked their spots in the semifinals after winning their respective quarterfinals matches. Saudia Catering, the Group 2 top seed after the eliminations round, demolished fourth seeded team Uricane 2-1, while third seed JRTC vanquished second seed team Sandstorm via a 3-0 sweep. In Group 1, first seed SOFTC-AWW defeated fourth seed SCTC 2-1 and third seed Saudi Diyar eliminated second seeded team Dark Horse 3-0 as the 6th AlBaik Tennis Challenge 2014 winds down to the most exciting finals. With three teams finishing the eliminations round with identical 2-2 win-loss card in the Ladies Division HMX Category, it went down to the technicalities of points gained and counting the sets won to break the triple-tie which placed the Saudia City Tennis Club ladies on top and ABTC-Taif in the second thereby booking their finals meeting for the championship. Team Saudia Catering, which finished the eliminations round with an impeccable 5-0 slate, continued its onslaught in the quarterfinals by beating team Reem Riviera-Uricane. Noor and Axie controlled the first set against Roger and Robert at 8-3. In the second set, Uricane's Roel and Mel out-steadied Farouk and Dr. Mounir with an 8-2 score to level the match at 1-1. Third set was again taken by the Caterers as Mike and Michael won 8-4 win against Ronnie and Edison for a commanding 2-1 lead with a three-point buffer. Banking on its fourth set tandem of Alex and Ryan, the Saudia Catering duo did not fail the team as it methodically downed Reygil and Ver 6-1. The match was then awarded to the Caterers paving the way for their semifinals appearance. Jeddah Ranao Tennis Club (JRTC) on the other hand had a much easier match against Sandstorm. First set had Jimmy and Sohaimi conquering Roden and Tonjie 8-1, followed by Noroden and Nash winning 8-6 over Sammy and Tani. Closing the match in the third set was Tuffs and Amer's 8-2 slaying of Nilo and Abe to award the match to team JRTC and a place in the semifinals. Completing the cast of semifinalists in the LMX Category are SOFTC-AWW and Saudi Diyar, who also won their quarterfinals assignments. In Category C, the semifinalist teams are: Ako'y Tenistang Pinoy (ATP) beating SCTC 2-1, SBG-RPDTC-1 winning over SOFTC-AWW 3-1, MRTC defeating Twister 3-0 and SBG-RPDTC-2 winning over Sandstorm 2-1. In Category B2, the semifinalists are: Black Tigers, ABTC, SOFTC-AWW and Azizeyah. In the B1 Category the four teams to progress are: SOFTC-AWW, JRTC, RSTP and ASTEC, while in the MMX Category the qualified teams are: Sandstorm, SOFTC-AWW, JRTC-Makita and Azizeyah. Organized and managed by the Association of Tennis Clubs in Jeddah (ASTEC) under the helm of its chairman Francis Idjao Jr. and Tournament Director Tonton Pana, this 27th ASTEC team tennis tournament, being played at the Trio Ranch Country Club tennis courts, is presented in partnership with AlBaik Food Systems Co. Ltd. represented by Bassam Al-Seyofi (PR manager) and Ed Cabiedes (branch manager) and is supported by Deltaz Marketing (Racquet Shop), Skyfreight Forwarders and Al-Marai Drinks.
