Table tennis titles CLEAN SWEEP BY ENGLAND

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32566, 27 March 1971, Page 48

Table tennis titles CLEAN SWEEP BY ENGLAND

(Special Correspondent N.Z.P.A.) SINGAPORE. England yesterday completed a clean sweep of Commonwealth table tennis titles. Having earlier won the men’s and women’s teams’ event, England went on to take all five individual championships.

The expedite rule came into force in the final of the women’s singles between the English girls, Misses J. Shirley and K. Mathews.

Miss Shirley won the first game and was leading 14-12 in the second when the regulation 15 minutes was up. Thereafter, the server had to score in 12 strokes.

STRONG DEFENCE Miss Mathews had played for the expedite after she had been unable to break through Miss Shirley’s defence. But Miss Shirley showed her prowess as a hitter, her placements and angles were superior to Miss Mathews’s, and she won the title, 23-21, 17-21, 21-19, 21-18. The final of the men’s singles was a stirring contest between T. Taylor (England) and Mir Khassim Ali, a 23-year-old Indian bank clerk. Taylor, who is remarkably quick, has a tong readi, and his control and consistency suggests this young player will be a force in the sport in England for many years.

He frequently scored with acutely-angled placements from his own backhand (he is a left-hander) to the forehand of Ali. POWERFUL SHOTS The Indian gets tremendous power in his shots but he overhit in the first two games and lost them, 14-21, 18-21. Ali led 14-8 and 15-10 in the third, only to see Taylor level at 17-all, and lead 18-17. They were all square at 18all, and at 19 and 20. Taylor then took the game, 22-20 and the match. Results were:— MEN'S SINGLES Semi-finals.—T. Taylor (England) beat C. Wuvanlch (Australia), 21-15, 21-15, 21-14: Mir Khassim AU (India) beat G. Jaganatb (India). 21-10, 21-10, 21-8. Final.—Taylor beat Mir Khassim AU, 21-14, 21-18. 22-20. For third place. Wuvanlch beat Jaganath, 11-21, 21-16 10-21, 21-17, 23-21. WOMEN'S SINGLES Semi-finals.—J. Shirley (England) beat P. Plddock (England), 21-18, 21-16, 16-21, 21-19; K. Mathews (England) beat V. Nesukaitls (Canada), 21-16, 21-18, 21-16. Final.—Miss Shirley beat Miss Mathews. 23-21 17-21, 21-19, 21-18. For third place.—Miss Plddock beat Miss Nesukaitis. 21-14, 21-17, 21-12. MEN'S DOUBLES Final.—A. Hydes (England) and Taylor beat Ma Lung Sang and Chan Sheuk Min (Hong Kong), 21-17 21-16, 21-10. WOMEN'S DOUBLES Final.—Misses Mathews and Piddock beat Misses K. Mukherjee and K. Chargeman (India), 21-15, 21-16, 16-21, 21-18. For third place.—Ong Mooi Mooi and Tan Sok Hong (Malaysia) beat Nesukaitis and H. Simerl (Canada), 21-16, 21-16, 21-17. MIIXED DOUBLES Hydes and Miss Plddock beat T. Clayton (England) and Miss Mathews, 12-21, 21-18, 17-21, 21-15, 21-15. For third place.—Soong Poh Wah and Ong Mooi Mooi (Malaysia) beat C. Wuvanlch and Miss V. Woodward (Australia), 21-14, 19-21, 21-16. 22-20. '