LAWN TENNIS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 105, 2 May 1908, Page 14

LAWN TENNIS.

A short time ago I dealt with the question of '"seeding the draw." It appears that the New Zealand Association has appealed to the English authorities for leave to employ this method of arranging contests at championship meetings. On this subject the "Dominion" tennis column has the following remarks: —"From an English exchange it appears that the New Zealand Association has made an interesting application to the Lawn Tennis Association of England, which will he duly considered at the next council meeting. It appears that the New Zealand Association is asking that the Lawn Tennis Association shall sanction the "seeding of the draw" at open meetings. The request is equivalent to a demand that Regulation 17.. ordaining the manner in which the draw shall take place, shall be altered. Such a drastic change with the highly contentious points it raises, has, of course, shocked some of the conservative players in England, and they demand that it be not adopted without the approval of a general meeting. The opposition resent the bestowal of such arbitrary powers on those responsible for the draw. They Admit that there may b? utilitarian* reasons why the cracks should be s.?parat.?d from each other in earlier rounds (as by a strange coincidence they periodically are at several open meetings), but contend that a draw to remain a draw must be conducted, on absolutelyj speculative lines. Otherwif,? it becomes : an "arrangement." and '"the luck of the draw" has no Generally it is admitted that the question is a delicate one, especially as it is by no moans certain that the present rule has not been more honoured in the breach than in the observance. The New Zealand hon. secretary was shown the above correspondence irom England, and was asked if it was a fact. He smilingly admitted it was, and on being pressed for an opinion said that the "random draw" was not I generally favoured in New Zealand, as club mates were continually being drawn to connect one another in the first round after perhaps having travelled from Wellington to New Plymouth to attend a tournament. The playors. of course, argue that they could hay? had just such a game on "their own courts at home. Then again, all the best players might all be in the same half, an\ when it comes to the final, the champion, no doubt, possibly has to play off against a very ordinary player who has come through in the other half. The final, which should be th,? best match of the event, may be a very tame affair, and such an ending is not in the best interests of the sport. The final, to make the sport popular, must be the best match. The event should improve as the matches are played oft', and the best players should come together in the last three rounds, that is. of course, with a Jargc entry. The secretary, Mr. Gold:e, contended that a player who wanted luck in the draw to help him through should not be considered, and the rule of the "random draw" was only worth considering when all th.? corupetitior? were of an equal merit. It often happened in England where s.?ven prizes are given in an evitnt that a player would get a prize although some ten or twelve players in other parts of the draw could beat him easily and yet could not gain a prize owing to having mot the cream of tho players in their half of the draw. Here are a few notes from the "Star's" special correspondent dealing with tlje recent tournaments in the South of .France, in which Wilding took a prominent part: — Anthony Wilding's "close season," so far as lawn tennis is concerned, is a briei one compared to that enjoyed by most men. Wilding's tennis year opens early and ends laU?, for the New Ze.alander is a bird of passage, and if tennis is "off" in the Old Couutry he simply hies him to some warmer clime to indulge his penchant for what has been called, by people who do not know the demands strenuous lawn tennis mak.?s on a man's physique, "the curates' game". Last week Wilding was exhibiting his prowess at Monte Carlo, and, as usual, managed to get '"right among the pots." He won the "singles," and with that brilliant but very erratic player, M. G. J. Ritchie, as partner, carried off the Doubles, and was only beaten in the final round of the Mixed Doubles (in which he was associated with Mdle. De Jladarasz) by that famous player, H. L. Doherty and Miss Eastlake-Smith (i—4, o—o. In the final of the Gentlemen's Singles Wilding showed, very in and out form against th.3 Australian, W. V. Eaves. The latter, volleying in particularly good form, caused the score to be called "two sets all" ( r j —3, -i —o, o—3, 4 —(i), but the New Jealander's superior condition told its 'u e in the deciding set, and in that Ea; s failed to suor.e a singie game. In Doubles Wilding and Rilehie had to f.°.ce in the finai those persevering placers Eaves and G. C. Ball-Greene, who ga»'e the New Zealander and his partner a fine game. Wilding was absolutely bril.iant at the net, and with Ritchie erratic: the major portion of the scoring was done by the Antipodean. He and Ritchie won the first sot at C—4, and the next at but idler a lough tussb Eaves and Greene took the third at l> —4- The decider was well contested, but Wilding's work at tUe net was far too good for the opposition, and he and Ritchie claimed the Doubles' Championship by 3 sets to 1 and 22 games to 15. In the Mixeti Doubles Wilding and partner had a fairly easy time of it until they met Doherty and Miss Eastlake Smith in the semi-final round. "H.L." was in fine form, and his partner (who i won the Ladies' Singles) seconded his efj forts admirably, Mdle. De Madarasz j played very well, but the odds were vastly in favour of Doherty and Miss Smith, who, playing up to the top of their form! won two sets off the, reel (6 —4, 6—3), and' the championship. Wilding's net-work I was again extremely fine, and with a stronger partner he would have secured "a triple event.' . The following account of Parker's struggle for the final of the Doubles Championship at Adelaide last month should be read with interest by those who admired his play in Auckland earlier in the season.:— " The Doubles Championship, vrhieh occupied more time than any other event [in the afternoon, will lon» be remembered by th« epeetatcee, who, iaaed the

discomfort caused by the chilly atmosphere which foUowed the disappearance of the sun, in order to see the sets through. R. G. Bowen (who, with H. A. Parker had already taken strenuous exercise in the singles), set out, in company with A. R- Taylor, a young player whose tenn:s is frequently brilliant, although he is adnrttediy erratic at times, to wrest the laurel. from H. A. Parker and H. Hunt, ihe Victorian " smasher." The conclusion o c the first set damped the spirits of thf local players' supporters badly, ending as it did, with 5 games again.t their 1, and (says a local paper) their hearts were m their mouths in the next set, when the games of each side crept up in close company, and only enabled Bowen and Taylor to equalise matters at 10— S. Tli* third bout taxed the four participants severely, Bowen especially showing the combined efforts of the warm sun and the rucaing about, and the result of this also helped to snatch victory further from the local men, the scores being 5—7. But from this stage to the finish they spurted, and, helped by a temporary weakness by Parker in getting the ball over the net and the erratic handling of his racquet by Hunt, who had previously brought himself into prominence by his net play, they secured the next two sets at o—4, 6—l, the performance being applauded heartily by the spectators.