Francis Alcantara: The reinvention of a tennis champ

MANILA, Philippines – Francis Alcantara still gets goosebumps when he thinks back to that day in January of 2009. He was just a few days shy of his 17th birthday, still a high school student at Xavier University, playing in Melbourne Park.

If he never played another set, he could live the rest of his life knowing he had won a title at a Grand Slam event.

“My ultimate dream was just to watch Grand Slams. Playing there and winning one, it’s too much; I’m too blessed right now,” says Cagayan de Oro City’s Alcantara of the day he and Taiwan’s Hsieh Cheng-peng won the boys’ doubles title at the Australian Open.

Few things can compare to becoming the first Filipino player to win at a Grand Slam, but the now 25-year-old Alcantara is hoping to add another milestone to his career when he competes at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games.

Alcantara, who goes by Niño, will represent the Philippines in the tournament, which runs from August 21 to 26, playing singles and doubles with Ruben Gonzales, whom Alcantara had teamed with last year at an Australia Open wild card tournament in Zhuhai, China. 

Other Filipino players who will don the Philippine flag colors in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, are Jeson Patrombon, Alberto Lim Jr, Anne Clarice Patrimonio, Denise Dy, Khim Iglupas. and Katharina Melissa Lenhert.

Alcantara has plenty of experience playing for the national team, having won a pair of SEA Games bronzes in 2015, and being a staple of the Davis Cup team for several years. There’s something special about the SEA Games, however.

“It’s like Olympics but for Southeast Asia,” says Alcantara. “It’s one motivation for us to do well because our fellow Filipino athletes are there to support us. It’s way different than Davis Cup because Davis Cup, you play for your country but there’s only 4 guys.”

Pulling double duty is taxing but Alcantara should be in game shape, having played “a lot of tennis” during a 10-week tour which saw him spend 3 weeks in Singapore, two weeks in Hong Kong, 3 weeks in China, before wrapping up with two weeks in Thailand.

Even without Treat Huey, the national team anchor who withdrew from the SEA Games to play at the US Open later this month, Alcantara believes in the country’s chances with most of the 2015 team intact.

“We’re pretty confident still without Treat because we have AJ [Lim] who is a young gun. He’s doing really well in his circuit in the States,” says Alcantara.

“But I think we’re all ready and up for it. But there’s gonna be threats of course. Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam – they’re always gonna be good. Whoever plays better that day wins,” he adds.

Tennis found him

Alcantara didn’t find tennis so much as tennis found him. He grew up right across the street from a court, and his dad taught him how to play as soon as he could hold a racket. He remembers a “brutal” start to his competitive career – traveling alone to tournaments at age 9 and 10. It wasn’t until he met tennis benefactor Romy Chan at age 11 that he was able to take his career to the next level.

Alcantara began training at the Philippine Tennis Academy in Manila and played in all of the big 4 Grand Slams – Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open – as a juniors player between 2009 and 2010. He earned scholarships to play at US colleges Fresno State and Pepperdine University. He graduated from the latter with a degree in intercultural communications.

Should his career in tennis not pan out, he says he’ll use his degree to become a television sports commentator. But his recent success suggests that his best days are ahead of him.

In the 12 months since teaming with Davis Cup and National University tennis coach Karl Santamaria and conditioning coach Reil Espino, Alcantara has won 5 doubles titles and has been a finalist in 4. In November last year, he reached his first singles final at the Vietnam F9 Futures, says Santamaria.

He’s gone from being ranked in the 4-digit range by the ATP World Tour to 769 in singles, and from over 700 to 367 as a doubles player in the latest rankings.

“Ever since we started August last year, we set out goals for his career. Biggest ones are making it into the Top 100 in doubles within the next 3 to 4 years so he can campaign on the ATP Tour like Treat Huey. Then another goal is making it to the 2020 Olympics,” says Santamaria.

“But for our short term (12-18 months) goal, it’s making the top 300, winning titles in the ITF Futures, and of course a gold in this year’s SEA Games.”

Santamaria says that to his recollection, Alcantara is the highest ranked homegrown player on the ATP Tour since Felix Barrientos, who reached 180 in 1991.

“There’s still a lot of work to be done, especially as he moves up to the next level, which is the ATP Challengers. But he’s hitting his targets and is even in a great position to exceed them with still 3 months left in the season,” says Santamaria.

Alcantara, who is sponsored by Peugeot Philippines on a 6-year contract and Bienvenido Santos, says he’s never gotten to ask the sport’s biggest stars for advice but has taken photos with Roger Federer, Andy Murray, and Rafael Nadal. He hopes someday to play in the same tournaments with them.

For now, Niño’s focus is on becoming “El Niño de Oro” at this year’s SEA Games.

“[Winning gold] would be a big help for my tennis career because I’ll be more confident playing against Southeast Asian people. I will get their respect also and for the country. I want to get a gold for the Philippines also,” he says, before recalling that the Philippines’ goal this year is to win 50 golds.

“Hopefully I’ll get one; maybe two. If me and Ruben play well, we’ll see.” – Rappler.com