Lewis joins Parun

Press, 29 June 1983, Page 44

Lewis joins Parun

NZPA staff correspondent London Chris Lewis becomes only the second New Zealander since the First World War to reach the quarter-finals in the men’s singles at Wimbledon. After his three set win over the Nigerian, Nduka Odizor, Lewis joins Onny Parun, who achieved it twice in 1970 and 1972, as the only New Zealand quar-ter-finalists since the legendary Anthony Wilding was runner-up in 1914, after winning the title from 191013. Yesterday’s fourth round encounter between Lewis and Odizor was expected to be a closely fought battle but the Nigerian was never in the running. Lewis won the one-and-a-half hour match 6-1, 6-3, 6-1, and apart from a short time in the third set when Odizor broke his service, was always in complete control. Lewis was cautiously optimistic about his chances in the quarter-finals when he meets the American unseeded player, Mel Purcell, who beat the thirteenth seed, Brian Gottfried, in four sets. The winner of this match will go into the semi-final against the victor of the encounter between the South African, Kevin Curren, and an American, Tim Mayotte.