CECIL MAMIIT and Eric Taino conspired for a 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Aqeel Khan and Asim Shafik yesterday to give the Philippines a 2-1 lead over top seed Pakistan in their Asia-Oceania Zone Group II first round tie in Davis Cup competitions.

The Fil-Americans, bronze medalists in last year’s Doha Asian Games, took all of one set to get their game going against the Pakistanis before pushing the country to within a match of clinching a semifinals berth in the zone.

The Philippines go for the first of two chances in winning the best-of-five matches at 10 a.m. today when the 31-year-old Mamiit tangles with Aqeel at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center. Taino will play the last singles match against Jalil

The two nations split the opening singles matches last Friday with Mamiit routing Jalil Khan, 6-1, 6-0, 6-1, and Aqeel getting even for Pakistan with a 6-4, 0-6, 7-6 (1), 7-5 decision over Taino.

The winner in this tie will tangle with New Zealand in the semifinals on April 8 to 9 in New Zealand while the loser will meet Pacific Oceania in a relegation tie on the same dates.

The Kiwis clinched the first semifinals berth when it won the first two singles and yesterday’s doubles against Pacific Oceania for an unassailable 3-0 advantage in Dunedin, New Zealand.

The Philippines leads Pakistan, 2-1, in their head-to-head meeting with thePhilippines blanking them, 5-0, in 1950 and sneaking through, 3-2, in 1975, both in Manila. Pakistan beat the Philippines, 4-1, in 1974 in Pakistan.

The Philippines, the Eastern Zone winner in 1957, 1958, 1960 and 1964, last saw action in Group I in 1997, losing to Indonesia, 2-3, in the first round and to Lebanon, 2-3, in the relegation match that demoted the country to Group II.

The Philippines slid down to Group III in 2002 but regained its Group II seat the next year. In 2005, Lebanon demoted the Philippines anew to Group III.

The Filipinos, behind Mamiit and Taino, swept Group III last year to make a return to Group II this year.

Pakistan reached the World Group playoffs for the first time in 2005 but lost to Chile while the Filipinos, behind the exploits of Felix Barrientos, Roland So , Camoy Palahang and Danilo Pila topped the Zone in 1991 to gain a World Group qualifying berth against Sweden, which blanked the locals, 5-0, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium on carpet.