The Philippine Men’s National Tennis Team kept its 2026 Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group III promotion hopes alive after pulling off a stunning upset over the highest-ranked nation in its bracket on Thursday at the National Tennis Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Veteran doubles specialists Francis Casey Alcantara and Ruben Gonzales delivered for the second straight day, defeating Damir Abdusamadov and Abdulaziz Usmonjonov in straight but hard-fought sets, 7-6(2), 6-4, to clinch a 2-1 victory over Uzbekistan.
The opening set was as tight as it could get, with neither pair dropping serve through the first 12 games. Experience proved decisive in the tiebreak, as Alcantara and Gonzales raced to a 4-0 lead before closing it out comfortably.
The second set featured an exchange of service breaks in the third and fourth games before both teams settled into a 4-4 deadlock. Once again, the Filipino veterans came through in the clutch. They broke serve in the ninth game before holding their own to seal both the match and the tie.
Eric Olivarez Jr. secured the opening point for the world No. 95 Philippines, which entered the tie as a heavy underdog against world No. 68 Uzbekistan. Olivarez stunned higher-ranked Amir Milushev, winning 6-3, 6-2 in just one hour and 20 minutes.
Uzbekistan leveled the tie at 1-1 after taking the second singles match. Sergey Fomin, the highest-ranked player in the entire competition at world No. 295, lived up to his billing by defeating the Philippines’ top singles player, AJ Lim, 6-4, 6-2.
The Philippines had opened its campaign with a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to world No. 86 Jordan. Zaid Mashni defeated Olivarez, 6-4, 6-4, before Lim was forced to retire while leading the second set against Mohammad Alkotop.
After dropping the opening-set tiebreak, 7-6(5), Lim bounced back to win the second set, 6-0. However, he was unable to continue, handing Alkotop the victory by retirement.
Alcantara and Gonzales salvaged the lone point for the Philippines by defeating Mousa Alkotop and Malek El-Qurneh, 7-5, 5-7, 7-6(5).
The Philippines will next face winless Singapore. The world No. 89 Singaporeans suffered identical 2-1 defeats to both Uzbekistan and Jordan.
Coached by US-based Filipino tennis legend Joseph Lizardo, the Philippine squad will aim for a 3-0 sweep of Singapore while hoping Uzbekistan defeats Jordan. If both results materialize, the Philippines will top the bracket and earn automatic promotion to Asia/Oceania Group II.
If the Philippines beats Singapore but Jordan defeats Uzbekistan, the Filipinos will finish second in the group and advance to a playoff against the second-place team from the other bracket for the third and final promotion spot to Group II.
