LAWN TENNIS

Evening Post, Issue 88, 12 April 1924, Page 19

LAWN TENNIS

Cby "HUKA"I

EASTER ATTRACTIONS

TWO CHAMPIONSHIP MEETINGS

PAN LOWBY BEAT NEW ZEALAND'S BEST?

COMING EVENTS. Otago Championships, at Dunedin—Easter. Canterbury Championships, at Christchurch— Easter. Waikato Championships, at Hamilton-Easter, Hawkes Bay Club Championships, at Nupier— VVeH'.? g,ton Hard-court Championships, at , Wellington-Easter. University . Championships, at- Wellington— Uirkenhead and Northcote Handicap Tournament—Easter.

(By "HuKA.")

Easter is late this year, and it is to be hoped that the weather will not break until the tennis tournaments are completed on Easter Monday, 21st April. The inter-University tournament will be played on the Wellington Club's courts —the hard courts being used on account of tho lateness of -the season. Auckland, Canterbury, Otago, and Wellington all have good teams in the field, and the contest is bound to be a very close one. Canterbury at the present time are favourites.sbut would have had to take second place to Otago'had Sims, the New Zealand champion, been prevailed upon to travel and represent Otago. The Wellington team has a chance of upsetting calculations, as Miss Tracy should be able to win the ladies' singles, and with her partners in ladies' doubles and mixed doubles will be hard to beat. Miss Ballantyne (Otago) is the present holder of the ladies' chartipionship singles, and she.Will have to be an im-1 proved player to successfully defend her j title this year. I, Seay holds the men's I -singles, and on paper he looks class enough to 'hold off Smyth (Otago) and Fotheringham (Auckland), who appear to .be his strongest opponents. Hollings, if in his best form, rnigh't spring a surprise. Last year Otago and Canterbury • Universities tied for the championship, snd consequently both had their names engraved upon the Challenge Cup. Besides the inter-University events, another tennis attraction at Easter will be the Wellington Provincial Lawn Tennis' Association's -1924 Metropolitan , hardcourt championship and handicap tourna•ment, which will be played on the Brougham Hill and Newtown Clubs' courts on 18th, 19th, and 21st April. 'I he usual five championships and five handicap events are on the programme, and as the best players in the Wellington district will betaking part, some most interesting contests are sure to take place. It was fully expected that a bigger tournament would be run this year, •but again, owing to the scarcity of courts, the management has been compelled to proceed carefully. Entries were' to close on Friday night, and the draw takes place on Tuosday evening. Given fine weather, a most enjoyable tournament is sure, and the semi-finals and finals should be well worth watching. It is hoped to" play all the concluding matches at the Brougham Hill courts on Easter Monday. SOME INTERESTING MATCHES. J. N. Lo-wry has returned from England, where ho was studying at Cambridge University, to his- home at Okawa, Hawkes Bay. Although ho is not in great tennis form at present, a glimpse of his tennis was seen at Palmerston North during a recent week-end. Lowry played L. France, and each took a set ut 6-3. The latter scored 32 points to 21 in the first set; and the former 36 points to 29 in the second' set. Lowry beat D. France 9-7,; scoring <45 points to 39, but was beaten 6-1 in the second set, in which France scored 26 points to 11. The ex-Cambridge player's condition was against him, but sufficient' was seen of his tennis to convince onlookers that he would be able to hold his own - with the best in New Zealand when he is well trained. E. D.' Andrews played L. France, and won 6-3, 6-1, scoring 37 points to 27 in the first set, and 26 to 11 in the second. Andrews also defeated D. France 6-2, 6-4, scoring 34 pointß to 23 in the first set, and 36 to 30 in the second. The France brothers, in the morning, beat Andrews and Lowry, 7-5, 8-6, but during the afternoon --the latter pair iturned the tables at (6-4, 6-4.. It is quite possible that Lowry may be seen in action at Napier during the Easter holidays. It is to be. hoped that he will remain in New Zealand, and, if fit and well, should -be able to give all-comers a.good run for the next New Zealand championship singles. GRIFFITHS AND ROBSON BEATEN. In the semi-final of the Remuera Club (Auckland), Griffiths beat Robson, 6-1 2-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. "Half-volley," in the "Star," says:—"On looking back over the match, one is at once struck by Robson's failure to drive at any stage of the game. Frequently Griffiths was a yard or so out of court on his backhand side, but Robson's chops to/the openings were not speedy enough to win. A strong drive would have assuredly won' him many points on Saturday. ' The seventh game in the final-set, when Robson led 40-15, and missed a smash for game was the'turning point of the whole match." Since then Fortheringham, who beat Bartleet in tho other semifinal, has played Griffiths for top place on the Auckland ladder, and beaten -him, .6-0, 6-4. Fotheriughain will bo playing for his University here at Easter, a-nd it will be interesting to see how he shapes against Smyth or Seay," should' he meet them. The Aucklander is reckoned to be as safe as a brick wall, but Smyth or Seay may be too aggressive for him. Harking back to Griffiths,, one can' hardly understand that player's form, as when he plays Robson in Auckr land the match usually results in Griffiths's favour,.but when these two players attend tournaments away from Auckland'it is invariably'Robson who comes out on top. Consequently the latter has always been looked upon as the better player of the two by those whefdo not reside in the Queen City. ACROSS THE SEAS. The South Australian' Championships have. conclusively proved that O'Hara Wood (Victoria) is playing at the top of his form again. In the semi-final of ■the singles he beat E. T. Rowe, 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 6-3, and in the final beat Hone, the tall South Australian, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. Miss Lance (New South Wales) stood out head and shoulders above the other lady players, and by her performances this season is without doubt the finest lady player south of t-bo Line. Miss Le Mesurier (South Australia) caused a sensation by beating Miss Bbyd, the Victorian champion, 6-3, 8-6. but Miss [ Lance beat the winner 6-1, 6-0, and also accounted for Miss Akhurst, 6-2, 7-5. The doubles went to the New South Wales pair, Misses Lance and Akhurst, who beat ' Mrs. Rowe and Miss La Mesurier, 6-0, 6-2. In the match South Australia V. Victoria, Miss Le ilesm-ier again beat Miss Boyd, 6-2 [.2-6, 6-4, and. ajso Mrs. O'ttarji Woot^

6-4, 6-4. In the mixed doubles a- great final was played between Mrs. O'Hara Wood-and O'Hara Wood v. Miss Boyd and Hone. The latter pair took the ' I first set 6-4, but the O'Hara:' Woods evened by winning the secpnd set at 7-5. • The South Australians appeared to have the match won when they led 5-3 in the second set, but O'Hara Wood then played like a de-mon, and being ably backed up by his wife, won a great set by taking four games in succession, and going on they secured the third set at 6-3. Going on tournament performances of this season, -the Sydney "Referee" classifies the Australian ladies as follows : Miss Lance, Mrs. 'Molesworth, Mrs. Utz, Miss Le Mesurier, and it can be taken for granted that Miss Boyd, Miss Akhurst, Miss Gray, and Mrs. O'Hara Wood follow in close order. IT. H. Woodward, the energetic delegate for New Zealand in England, hopes to 'arrange friendly matches between players at present in England, who can be classified as representatives. of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada. He has also arranged for four New Zealand players to enter for the championship singles at Wimbledon. Each Dominion is entitled to nomina.te four players, and the "seeding" is so . arranged that if they are successful in winning their matches they cannot meet one another ,until the semi-finals. Mr. : Woodward is ever on the alert to assist and advise New Zealanders should they make themselves known to him. He has advised Mr. J. C. Peacock, the wellknown Wellington player, that he has been made an honorary member of the Roehampton i Club, where hard-court play may be secured, of the Queen's Club, for grass-court play, and of the Dulwich covered court, which has a wood floor. The -membership holds good during Mr. Peacock's stay in England.' Tennis players from this Dominion, who have had the, pleasure of meeting Mr. Woodward cannot praise him too highly for the amount of trouble he takes to make their stay in England an enjoyable one from a tennis point of view. New Zealand is evidently blessed with a very live wire in its English delegate. . . Tho International Lawn . Tennis Federation has gone to considerable trouble in revising the rules of lawn tennis, and the new rules, as drawn up by the federation, came into use as from the Ist January, 1924. Although the foot fault rule is not quits satisfactory to many of . the keener followers of tennis, and they have said so, yet few if any have noticed something else in the service rules that is open to discussion. In rule 7it clearly says that "the service shall be deemed to have' been delivered at the . moment of the impact of the racquet and the ball." Yet in rule 9it also clearly states that the service is a fault if the server Misses the ball in attempting to strike it. It is quite ' reasonable to decide that until there is impact there is no service, and 'if there -is no service, . how can there be a fault. Instead of saymg that the service is a fault if the server misses the ball in attempting-to strike it, the authorities might have said that if the server misses the ball in attempting to serve it, the attempted service is a fault. Nevertheless players are advised not to miss the ball and then contest the point as to whether it is a fault or not. But f orthose who are inclined to have some friendly argument it is a, good point for a, wet afternoon when tennis is impossible. Servers are reminded that if they do not attempt to stiike. the ball after projecting the ball by hand into the air, the service is not a iaiut.