Shook Pete’s hand in Shook

KUALA LUMPUR—Yesterday, when my watch read “3:15,” I knew it was improbable. The exclusive, by-invitation-only Cocktails Party for Roger Federer and Pete Sampras was scheduled at 6 p.m. and, less than three hours shy of that time, I still had not received any confirmation.

But by 3:30 p.m., as I pulled out my mobile phone, my eyes enlarged reading the text message: “Ok I will meet u @ Starhill 530pm. I will pass u the invite then.”

WOW! I couldn’t believe it. We were at the IKEA store, 30 minutes away from the hotel, and I had barely two hours left. Plus, I had a problem: I brought no formal attire. So I rushed to buy a pair of leather shoes, bought a Giordano gray T-shirt, and, just as I was searching to buy a black coat, Dr. Ronnie Medalle phones to say that I can borrow his black jacket. Perfect. And so I ran. Got to Hotel Capitol by 4:15, changed, then sprinted to the venue.

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Nadal and Gasquet: A smash in Malaysia!

KUALA LUMPUR—Richard Gasquet, the eighth best tennis player on this planet, could hardly believe his French eyes. He was standing on the baseline, in control of the point, when he lobbed a high ball above Rafael Nadal’s head. Surely, Gasquet thought, even if Nadal stands an imposing 6-foot-1, there was no way the Spaniard would retrieve the ball. But the three-time French Open champion spun a U-turn and sprinted for the baseline. And, just when the ball was a foot high from landing on the ground, he flicked an in-between-the-legs shot which zoomed across the net—for a winner! And that wasn’t on YouTube.

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Flying to Malaysia to see Roger and Pete

KUALA LUMPUR—Our Cebu Pacific flight 5J501 left for Manila at 9:10 p.m. last Sunday and landed at the KL Airport at 12:45 a.m. yesterday. The flight was, to borrow Thai Airways’ slogan, as smooth as silk.

From Cebu, on board the plane were myself and my wife Jasmin, top ophthalmologist Dr. Ronnie Medalle and his wife Steph, and Mark Aseniero and his wife Ding. Plus, there was a surprise Cebuano we met at the NAIA departure area: Vince Marc “Mac-Mac” Tabotabo. All of 10 years old, you’ve read the “TABOTABO” name publicized in these sports pages many times. He’s RP’s no.1 tennis player in the 10 and under category. Accompanied by his dad Titus and coach Dodong Ruelan, Mac-Mac (together with Nino and Sally Mae Siso and Jacob Lagman) will join four tennis events here in Malaysia.

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31st Milo Marathon

Last Sunday morning, my alarm rang at 5:20 in the morning. From our hotel room in Manila, I took a peek outside and saw that the cement roads were wet and the skies were dark and rain was about to fall. I went back to sleep. By 7 a.m., I arose back and wore my running shoes then headed for Rizal Park to run 12 kms. Just a few hours earlier, on the same spot, the 31st Milo Marathon commenced. There were several categories: 42-K, 10-K, 5-K, and 3-K. Thousands of men and women ran. Here are some photos…

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In Boston, an avid spectator from Cebu

The Boston Celtics are 8-0. They own the NBA’s best scorecard. Last week, top Cebu rheumatologist Dr. Ronald Eullaran fulfilled his lifelong dream to watch “Larry Bird’s team.” Here’s Dr. Ron Eullaran:

“I was in Boston from Nov. 6 to 11 for our Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology at the new Boston Intl. Convention Center. The topics were great but we were more excited to watch the game between the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets. I have long been a fan of the Celtics since the era of Larry Bird. Visiting the Boston Garden is one of my dreams. Well, it became true last Wednesday, Nov. 9. Boston Garden, now named Banknorth Garden, is huge but it wasn’t difficult for me to spot the #33 jersey among the retired numbers that hung from the roof.

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Shooting with the Stars

That’s Cecil Mamiit (2nd from the left) when we watched him at the Davis Cup event earlier this year at the Manila Polo Club. Mamiit, in case you didn’t know, is the country’s top bet in tennis. Although he grew up and resides in California, he’s come back home to represent his native Philippines.

Dr. Ronald Eullaran stands at the left-most. Dr. Ronnie Medalle is 2nd from the right and I’m the one at the right-most. I’ll be together with Dr. Medalle, one of Cebu’s top ophthalmologists, next week when we watch the Federer/Sampras and Nadal/Gasquet exhibition matches in Kuala Lumpur. Hope we can pose for a similar photo with those tennis greats named Roger and Pete.

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