Notable success for Prisk

Press, 3 August 1981, Page 30

Notable success for Prisk

The promising junior. Michael Prisk, will long remember the 1981 Canterbury open table tennis championships — not only did he win his first senior singles title, but he backed that up with victories in the men’s doubles and the mixed doubles.

In the singles final, Prisk retained his control and outlasted a determined John Armstrong to win in five games. It was an entertaining contest, with Prisk being content to wait for the right opportunity to attack the nimble veteran.

Armstrong, chasing his sixth title, defended gamely, and must have been favoured to win when, after trailing Prisk throughout the fourth game, suddenly edged ahead to force a deciding game. But Prisk, ranked fifth in the junior listings for New Zealand, overcame the setback, and deservedly won the match.

In the men’s doubles final, Prisk and Peter de Boer, the top seeds, dropped the opening game to John Richards and Graham Lamb, before taking charge to win in four games. Prisk then combined with another talented youngster, Monique Van der Aa, to win the mixed doubles title, being untroubled to hammer the second seeds, Richards and Jan Morris, in the final. Miss Looms won her second Canterbury open singles title when she fought back from two games down to beat the seven-times champion, Miss Morris. The pair then combined to comfortably win the women’s doubles title, beating Miss Van der Aa and Debbie Tipper in straight games.