LAWN TENNIS Moss Wins Singles For Third Time

Press, Volume C, Issue 29669, 13 November 1961, Page 6

LAWN TENNIS Moss Wins Singles For Third Time

Canterbury’s second ranked tennis player, G. D. Moss, won the men’s singles final for the third year in succession when the show week-end tournament concluded at Wilding Park yesterday. But he was given considerable opposition by a player who, before the tournament began, would have been thought a most unlikely finalist.

The Cashmere player. R. M. Minson. who is not ranked in the province and who was not seeded for this tournament. took Moss to three sets. | Moss won, 6-0. 4-6, 6-3. In ' each of his previous two wins in this final Moss has beaten ( the player who was to be ranked above him at the end of the season—C. W. Pritchard in 1959 and C. G. Judge last year. To Judge he concerted only one game. But Moss was playing better tennis at the beginning of last season than he is this season and yesterday in his singles final and later in the final of the mixed doubles, he showed some frailties and loss of control that were fo-eign to his game then. The women’s singles final produced less of interest because Canterbury’s top ranked woman and third nationally. Miss J. Davidson, was far and away superior to her opponent. Miss K Williams. When Miss Davidson is un to her best form she is a delightful player and she was closer to her best in the final yesterday than she has been in o'her matches this season. She b»at her club-mate. 6-1. 6-1. Miss Davidson had a fur*her success when she won the mix»d doubles with the voung plaver, L. Wotk'n" Thev beat Mo-s and Mrs P. Leopold. 8-6. 6.2, but although interesting enough it was not tennis of a high standard. In Touch Mws was in fine touch in the first set of the final and it looked as if this would be no more difficult than his win at the same time last year ove- Judge. He was nassing Minson swiftly as that player moved towards the net and his superb fitness was very obvious. He won the set without the loss of a game and was in coinple‘e control. ’’’he first game of the second set gave notice of the v*-uggl» that was to come when Mir'on won his first game as Moss began to hit loosely, a most unusual feature for his game. At the beginning of last season Moss was losing few games, let alone sets, to anyone, bu’ Minson had a 3-1 lead and later. 5-3. and then the set at 6-4. Serving strongly, he hit cleanly, kept the ball well up to Moss and kept on the attack. The more he succeeded the .more he gained in confidence, and he was helped by Moss’s loose ones and also by some double faults, another very unusual failing for Moss. In his final with W. Thom at Labour week-end he did not serve any. In the third set, after Moss had a lead of 3-1, he did not look like losing at any stage, but bis game was not up to its best standard. There were long patches when both players were winning points ■ almost solely from the opponent’s mistakes rather than from winners. Minson has every reason to be pleased with his performance in this tournament for it cannot be recalled that ■ he has reached the semifinals of a senior open tournament in Canterbury before. ■ let along the final. In his I semi-final on Saturday he did i excellently to beat the thirdI ranked Canterbury man. W. I Thom, 6-4. 6-4. Thom. ■ seeded second, made many ■ errors and he did not have I the aggression or the sure- ■ ness that he had in some of i his play last season when he followed his service quickly to the net to cut off returns with volleys. In the other semi-final, Moss beat the third-seeded L J. Walpole, ranked fifth in the province, 6-L 6-3. Walpole sometimes worked hard and intelligently for openings and then wasted them with an outed volley. Women’s Singles I Saturday's conditions were ■ atrocious for tennis and I among those who found the ! wind most disconcerting was I Thom. However, one player who did not let the wind upset her determination was Miss Williams. Unseeded herself she had eliminated the third seed, Mrs E. Campbell, on the first day, and she stuck tenaciously to her task to beat Miss D. Smith, of Rangiora, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, in a long struggle in her semifinal. In the third set she played very carefully, and in spite of the wind she gave the hall a lot of air. However, she played them accurately and placed well. But Miss Williams was no match yesterday for Miss Davidson. One feature of Miss Davidson's game was ■ that she did not serve a I double fault throughout and that is a claim she cannot ■often make. Her service was ■ fine indeed and her fore- ■ nand drive was hit with ■ force at the top of the I bounce. She was getting in i after her shots and Miss Wilj Liams could not drive her ■ back. ■ Miss Williams did not play as well as she did against Miss Smith on the Saturday and a lack of anticipation prevented her from getting the ball quickly enough. She also lost too many points hitting out. The mixed doubles final had a close first set but the tennis throughout was spoilt by a great number of errors, many of them simple ones The match began with each player losing service and there were many more lost before it finished. Moss was still troubled by double faults. Miss Davidson probably served better than any of them and at one stage she aced Moss and then Mrs Leopold in succession before 'OK too double faulted, la

the second set Watkins and Miss Davidson were the steadier. Results:— Men’s Singles Semi-finals.—G. D. Moss beat L. J. Walpole. 6-1, 6-3; R. Minson beat W. Thom. 6-4, 6-4. Final —Moss beat Minson, 6-0. 4-6, 6-3. Women’s Singles Semi-finals.—Miss J. Davidson beat Mrs D. McKinnel, 6-3, 6- Miss K. Williams beat Miss D. Smith. 7-5, 4-6. 6-2. Final.---Miss Davidson beat Miss Williams. 6-1. 6-1. Mixed Doubles Second Round.—P. Steinmetz and Miss D. Corich beat M. C. Healey and Mrs D. McKinnel. 0-6, 6-3, 7-5: G. Moss and Mrs P. Leopold beat R. Herd and Mrs E. Campbell. S-3. 6-0. Semi-finals.—Moss and Mrs Leopold beat Steinmetz and Miss Corich, 6-1. 6-2: L. Watkins and Miss J. Davidson beat W. Thom and Miss K. Williams, 7- 3-6, 6-3. Final.—W’atkins and Miss Davidson beat Moss and Mrs Leopold. 8-6. 6-2.