TOURNEY AT AUCKLAND

Press, Volume C, Issue 29437, 13 February 1961, Page 13

TOURNEY AT AUCKLAND

Finals Won By Australians (N.Z. Press Association) AUCKLAND, Feb. 12. The New Zealand women's singles champion. Miss Ruia Morrison, was outclassed, 6-0, 6-3, by the New South Wales champion, Miss Jan Lehane, in the women’s final of the Auckland international tennis tournament today. Miss Lehane was too steady for her opponent, and won mainly on Miss Morrison’s mistakes. The Australian Davis Cup player, R. Laver played with spasmodic brilliance to beat R. Emerson, the defending tournament champion, 6-4, 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. Laver impressed with many hard, accurate, cross-court drives, but at other times he lost points with simple mistakes. The result reversed the result of the pair’s last encounter when Emerson won the Australian singles championship from Laver. The third set took’ 40 minutes, and although Emerson won 6-2, Laver made some spectacular strokes, scoring with some top-spun crosscourt drives. Laver’s placements improved in the last two sets and he made few errors in his volleying. The Australian doubles combination of Miss Lehane and Miss Lesley Turner outplayed Miss Morrison and Mrs H. Robson in the women’s doubles final to ’win, 6-2, 6-2. The winners were more forceful throughout the match, placing their strokes quickly and accurately. There were many long rallies, but the result was never in doubt. Miss Morrison and her partner tried to lob themselves to victory, but sure smashing by the Australians. soon countered that. It was left to the last match of the day, when all but a hundred or so of the gallery had departed, for New Zealand to win some small share ’of glory. E. D. White, who has seldom failed to play the best that is in him, teamed with Miss Turner to win the mixed doubles from Miss Lehan and M. Hussey, an Australian Universities player.