TENNIS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 136, 21 March 1935, Page 2

TENNIS.

AUSTRALIAN DAVIS CUP TEAM. CONFIDENT OF SUCCESS. MELBOURNE, March 20. The Davis Cup tennis team left for England. . . J H. Crawford expressed the opinion that Australia has a good chance of winning the cup. New Zealand would be stronger this year, but he did not think the Dominion's team would defeat Australia. McGrath believes that South Africa will be one of the dark horses of the European zone, mainly owing to the inclusion of N. G. Farquharson, who in 1933 had a victory against F. J. Perry at Wimbledon. PERRY'S OPINION OF AUSTRALIANS. (United Press Association—Copyright) BAN. FRANCISCO, March 19. Interviewed at Hollywood, F. J. Perry said that he expects England to encounter more difficulty from Australia than the United States in the Davis Cup matches. He had no more plans of turning professional now than he had five years ago.

SMALLER SERVICE COURT. PARIS, March 19. The International Lawn Tennis Association adopted the proposal for experiment for lines a yard apart down the centre of the court with a view to making the service court smaller. The server is permitted to swing a foot in the air over the line. CHAMPIONS MUST BE YOUNG. STANLEY DOUST'S VIEW.

"A table tennis champion must be young," writes Stanley Doust, noted lawn tennis player and critic, in a London paper. The game has become so fast that the eyes are too old at 28 years of age. Indeed, the Hungarians, who excel at the game, says that a man begins to decline after he reaches 22. The little celluloid ball travels at such

a great speed over such a short distance that,the eye cannot follow it quickly enough to make sure of returning it accurately if the sight is not exceptionally keen. It is a fact, although it may appear fantastic to those who still look on the game as 'ping pong' that a player who has been out of the game for 12 months seldom makes a successful come-back after he is 26. At the moment F. H. ! JD. Wilde, the lawn tennis player who has played international table tennis, is vainly trying to return to international standard. He is not yet 26, but he was out of the game last year. Table tennis is not strenuous in the same sense as is squash racquets or lawn tennis. It calls for nimble feet and a good wrist but above all the eye must be young and alert. Barna, of Hungary, the world's champion, is not yet 21, and he is thinking of retiring next year because he considers himself too old."