Even the best intentions can backfire.

Seven break points may have been the difference. So, perhaps, was everything Alex Eala had learned about surviving when a tennis match refuses to behave.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) faces an intricate policy dilemma as the economy slows down sharply. Second-quarter GDP growth cooled to 2.3 percent year-on-year—down from 2.8 percent in the first quarter and well below the 5.4 percent mark recorded a year prior—placing the central bank in the difficult position of managing persistent price pressures while avoiding a deeper domestic downturn.