LAWN TENNIS

Auckland Star, Volume 55, Issue 22, 26 January 1924, Page 21

LAWN TENNIS

(By HALF-VOLLEY.) j

CHAMpyoNsmr fixtures. J Auckland—January 'JG. ZS. 20. U'24. ; Hawke's Bar—January 20, 8". 01. lMi. j Otago—Kaster Holidays, 19_4. | Wnikato—Eauter Holidays, io-M. | Birkenhead and Northcote Handicap Tournament— Easter. I j The Auckland championships, which j will have commenced by the time these | notes go to press, give promise this j year of being particularly interesting. , There is some doubt as to whether A. j \V. Sims, the New Zealand champion, will defend his title to the Auckland singles. Dr. Laurenson. who won the New Zealand championship previously, will be here, and a match between these two would be worth going a long way to see. Edgar Bartleet has shown con- j siderablv improved form this season, and it will be interesting to see how he fares against Laurenson. In the past | the doctor lias always succeeded in de- j feating the Kden and Epsom crack, but J as mentioned above, Bartleet is a | greatly improved player, and it is quite t on the cards that he will turn the tables this year. Against Sims I do " or favour Bartleet's chances so well. These two have met on several occasions, and on every one Sims has proved victorious, though "the match in the New Zealano championship was very close. Bartleet s , chief difficulty against Sims is to dis- | abuse his mind of the certainty of the latter's success. The singles championship should rest between Sims, Laurenson and Bartleet. If .Sims does not defend his title then Bartleet and Laurenson should fight out the final. In any case a lino match is a certainty. In the ladies' singles the winner should eomo from Miss Macfarlane, Miss Knight and Mrs. Scott-Watson. The former has been playing a lot of tennis lately, and is at present competing in the Masterton tournament. I understand she is to compete in the. Dartnevirkc tournament and then come straight on to Auckland. It looks rather a strenuous programme, aJid Miss Macfarlane will have to watch herself carefully to avoid staleness. Miss Howe, of Wellington, is competing, and if she strikes form may upset calculations. In the men's doubles Bartleet and Robson, the holders of the New Zealand championship doubles, should come through. Two other strong pairs are Laurenson and Gower and Griffiths and Brinsden. The last pair have previously beaten Bartleet and Robson, but I doubt if they will be able to repeat their performance of last year, especially in view of the fact that Brinsden is short of practice. Laurenson and Gower as a double are an unknown quantity. Laurenson. of course, when in form, plays a brilliant double by reason of hi* overhead work and volleying, but never having seen Gower in action I am unable to judge of their strength as a pair. In the combined doubles Robson and CNliss Macfarlane, fresh from their triumphs at the New Zealand meeting, should repeat that performance here without much difficulty. The next strongest pair appear to be . Brinsden and Mrs. 'Scott-Watson, but I do not think that they can stop the New Zealand champions. Secretaries of clubs should note that entries for the Dunlop Shield close on the 31st of this month. Tiie following, which I take from an English shows what a wondertui draw Suzanne is to tennis followers in England:—"And why is this frantic desire for seats at Wimbledon? To see AY. M. Johnston, our old American friend? No. To see Vincent Richards, the new American? A little yes. To see B. 1. C Norton, the youthful South African, who is so like the Prince of Wales? No. To see Monsieur Brugnon, of France, in his spotless duck*? No. To sec Monsieur Washer, of Belgium, or the f'onde de Gomar, oi Spain? No. To see Lycett or Woosnam? No. To see those perennials, Roper Ttarrett*and M. J. G. Ritchie? No. Nor yet to see Mrs. Mai lory or Miss Ryan. Why then these crowds, this importunity? The answer is Suzanne. Wimbledon is packed for Suzanne and Suzanne alone. Other players may be watched, but by every eye Suzanne is devoured. Other players but fill up the intervals between Suzanne in the singles and Suzanne in the doubles. Never have I seen despair and impatience and mortification so legibly written on the human countenance as on Thursday last ill court 2 when F. G. Lowe and K. Gilbert went on forever in their efforts to come to a decision. Every rally, and their rallies lasted for minutes —caused a groan. And why? Because later in the day, on that same court, which is the second holy of holies. Suzanne was to be in a contest. The best, tennis that anyone else could play would he merely an interference to the crowd. As for Suzanne herself, she remains what she was. She is no older: I mean she is not less young. He.r movements arc the same; her bandeau if not the same is true to type: her leaps and 'bounds are either the same or more powerful and terrifying: her knitting needles are the same although what she knits may be new. Looking at her I thought of her as tho Sarah Bernhardt of the courts." The editor of the American "Lawn i Tennis," in commenting on the |«>W footfault rule, says: —"The essence of the rule is that, from the time the server stands at rest to serve until the racquet touches the ball, both feet must remain behind the base line, and at least one foot, must remain in continuous contact, with the ground. To this extent, therefore, the enforcement of the foot-fault rule will be easier than in the past. That it should be enforced is quite beyond disi pute. If the service is not ptjoperly dej livered the whole fabric of laws falls to the ground. To violate the law by i inches and by feet or yards is a difference of degree only: no one would think of permitting the server to stand at the service line or midway between it and the base line." Recently a motion was moved at the New Zealand Lawn Tennis Association's meeting concerning the foot-fault rule, and the real reason for moving it was that the rule was not being observed in New Zealand; in fact, those who would have enforced the rule in matches were not at all popular, and were not wanted. In America all base linesmen are regularly reminded that it is their duty to judge foot-faults as well as balls that go over the line. Some day it will be the player who foot-faults that will be unpopular, and not the linesman who judges fairly for both tides.