Victorian Tennis Title To Fairlie

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31235, 6 December 1966, Page 21

Victorian Tennis Title To Fairlie

(N.Z. Press Association —Copyright) MELBOURNE. B. E. Fairlie (New Zealand) yesterday proved his superiority over Australia’s tennis juniors when he won the Victorian junior singles title from D. Smith (Queensland) at Kooyong.

Fairlie beat Smith 7-9, 6-4, 64 in windy conditions on the centre court. Afterwards, he said the wind was hard to gauge and had upset both players. Fairlie led 4-2 in the first set, which he lost 7-9, and then leading 3-1 in the second set was pegged back to 3-3 when a double fault cost him the sixth game. He attacked Smith’s service to have the Queenslander down 15-40 before taking the seventh game after deuce. Fairlie then served out the set for 64. The only break in the final set was in the fifth game, on Smith’s errors. The win yesterday was Fairlie’s second in three State tournaments this season. He won in New South Wales

and was runner-up in Queensland. R. Emerson flashed back to top form by whipping T. Roche 8-6, 64, 6-3, in the semi-final of the singles championships. In the second and third sets Emerson’s volleying was superb and after leading 4-1 in the second set he took it 64 after losing his service in the ninth game again. In the third set Roche held Emerson to 3-3 and then Emerson swamped him to take the set 6-3 and end the match in 78 minutes.

F. Stolie qualified for the final of the Victorian singles against Emerson on December 18 when he decisively outplayed J. Newcombe 64, 10-8, 3-6, 6-3 in a semi-final.