Julius Villabrille and Solomon Padiz Jr. moved a step closer to making more history after staging a thrilling 19–21, 21–19, 21–8 comeback victory over Malaysia’s Bryan Jeremy Goonting and Muhammad Haikal in the men’s doubles quarterfinals of the Philippine International Challenge 2026, presented by the Philippine Sports Commission, on Friday at Gameville Central Park in Mandaluyong City.
The three-time national champions are now just one win away from matching their feat in 2024, when they captured the PETRONAS International Challenge title.
This time, they dominated the deciding set, using a decisive 8–0 run to book a semifinal berth in the tournament backed by the MVP Sports Foundation, Smart, PLDT, Yonex, Sunrise, Maynilad, Cignal, MWell, Jollibee, Milksha, and Telescoop.
“Sa second set, sobrang dikitan; sila ‘yung leading tapos kami ‘yung papalit. Hanggang na-maintain namin ‘yun. Muntikan pa nga kaming masilat talaga, kaya kinailangan naming mag-focus. Kaya ayun nakuha pa rin namin ‘yung third set,” Villabrille shared.
As the last remaining Filipino pair in the tournament, which features athletes from 28 countries and is supported by the National Sports Tourism Inter-Agency Committee, Villabrille and Padiz hope to keep the home crowd cheering through the final weekend.
“Siguro ‘yun na lang po ang iisipin namin ng partner ko, hindi na lang ‘to para sa ‘min kundi para sa bayan,” Padiz added.
The World Championships-bound tandem will face either Malaysia’s Hon Jian Choong and Vin Sean Wong or Indonesia’s Yeremia Rambitan and Patra Rindorindo for a spot in Sunday’s final.
(C) PBAD
The victory by Villabrille and Padiz also provided a bright spot for the host nation after Clarence Villaflor’s inspiring run in the men’s singles came to an end. Fourth-seeded Alap Mishra of India eliminated the Filipino, 21–16, 21–14, in their quarterfinal showdown.
Mishra led an all-Indian charge into the semifinals and will next face Ginpaul Sonna, who defeated Sri Lanka’s Rasindu Hendahewa, 22–20, 21–12.
On the other side of the draw, Aryamann Tandon outlasted second seed Manjraj Singh, 20–22, 22–20, 21–17, to arrange a semifinal clash with Pranay Katta, who swept Siddhananth Gupta, 21–18, 21–15.
In the women’s singles, Thailand’s Tidapron Kleebyeesun headlined an all-Thai semifinal cast after rallying past Indonesia’s Dalila Aghnia Puteri, 19–21, 21–12, 21–13.
The top seed will face Anyapat Phichitpreechasak, who defeated Australia’s Rui Gao, 18–21, 21–16, 21–6.
Meanwhile, Ketklieng, who cruised past India’s Tara Shah, 21–12, 21–10, will take on Sarunrak Vitisarn, a 21–17, 21–11 winner over Azerbaijan’s Keisha Fatimah Azzahra.
Selected matches are available live and free on the PusoP.Com website and app. Fans can also catch the action through the Smart Sports Facebook and YouTube pages, as well as the Pilipinas Live app.
