TENNIS New Zealanders Out Of French Titles

Press, Volume C, Issue 29518, 20 May 1961, Page 15

TENNIS New Zealanders Out Of French Titles

(N.Z P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

PARIS, May 18. Two of New Zealand’s top tennis players, L. Gerrard and I. Crookenden, were beaten in the doubles of the French championships today. In another doubles match, M. Otway of New Zealand, playing with Britain’s J. Coni, was beaten by the Australians, R. Howe and R. Mark.

The young British hope, M. Sangster, entered the last 16 when he beat F. Stolle (Australia) in straight sets in the third round of the men’s singles. Sangster’s big test will come in the quarter-finals, where he will meet the Spanish number one, M. Santana, who beat the Wimbledon champion N. Fraser in the recent Italian titles. For the second successive year Australia’s official team fared badly. Of the four entered in the singles, only B.

Hewitt remained this evening.

R. Laver and R. Emerson, who are making private tours, are still in the singles. Laver, seeded to meet Pietrangeli in the finals, got caught up »n an 18-game third set before beating Argentina’s leading player, E. Soriano, 6-2, 6-3, 0-8. The Wimbledon champion Maria Bueno (Brazil) whose annoyance over doubtful line decisions ended with the umpire being replaced, was right out of touch for a time in a second-round clash and took an hour and a half to beat Margaret Hunt (South Africa).