LAWN TENNIS

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 123, 26 May 1928, Page 23

LAWN TENNIS

By "HUKA"

THE DAVIS CUP ITALY WINS AGAIN The Davis Cup ties of llic 'Jinropciin zone arc now into the third round. Italy, with de Morpmgo and Stcfuni, easily won .the opening sinales against Himuiniii, but these players we're forced to livu sets by Luppu and Dormer iiu tlio doubles-. Italy now pluys India in life third round. Germany and Spain had a real good tryout at BerJi'i. If. Moldenhauer, champion in l!« 0 and- 1927, beat Kduardo Flakier in lour sets. The latter has been a Davis •Cup representative since lU'2l, and won the Ciitalina singles championship in 1912, JOlii, Ullli, 1918, 1019, and 11)20. Prenn (Germany) beat' Sindren after,a hard fiveset match, leaving Germany two up. FluUiier and 3. Morale's, the latter represented. Spain against India last year,, unexpectedly defeated .Berginann and 11. Klein-' schroth, after a five-set match. The Spanish players won two sets at 7-5, 6-3, then their opponents, evened by taking thenext two at G-2, 8-0, but JFlaquer and .Morales ran away with the fifth set at 6-1. Germany won the match when Prenn beat Flaquer, 4-6, 0-3, G-2, 6-4, and will now meet Great Britain at Berlin in the- third round. The English players have an excellent chance of winning. Great Britain, with Edward Higgs and J. Colin Gregory, both of whom have been Davis Cup representatives 'before, captured the 'two opening singles against Finland. Higgs ■was' 4 pushed to four sets by Grahm, but Gregory won easily. George R. 0. .CroleKees and Cyril G. Eames won the doubles B-:!, 0-2, G-2, from Grahm and Grotenfelt. '11. Thinner, champion of Holland in 1023 and 1S)2O, has been a Davis Cup" re•pre.scntative since 1924. He knew too much for I. do Tackacs (Hungary), winning (i-2, 0-0, G-l. Holland defeated Hungary in the second roimd, and the winners will probably- meet Denmark in the third round at Amsterdam. H. Timmer is the leading Dutch player, and he beat de Tackacs very easily. B. yon Kehrling also went down to Timmev in 'three sets. Last year de Morpurgo beat Kehrling, 5-7, 64, 0-4, 5-7, 6-1, in the Italy-Hungary Davis Cup match, and as Tiniiner, this year, defeated Kehrling, 0-3, .04, 0-3, it is easily seen that the Dutchman is a very fine player. He won the championship of Holland in 1923 and 1920. For all that, in,the first round of the Davis Cup matches last year Denmark defeated Holland by four matches to one. E. Ulrich beat Timmer, G-0» 1-6, 6-4, 7-5, .but Timmer beat A. Petersen, 6-3, 64, 4-6, 8-6. When Holland meets Denmark this year the con-< test should prove a very close one, but Holland would appear to have a slight advantage, and the Dutch1 players will be contesting . the match on their home courts, winch means something on the Continent. , '. ■ , New Zealand's Chances. Czecho-Slovakia, playing at Stockholm, defeated Sweden. J. Kozehih beat O. Garell, 8-6, SO, 6-1, and Menzel beat Valmstromo, 6-3, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5. In the doubles the Slovakiaii's, M. Macenauer and J. Kozeluh, won easily from S. Malmstrom and Winnergsen, 6-0,. 6-2, 64. With the contest won,• Kozeluh stood'down from the second round of singles, and Macehauer, who took his'place, was defeated by Malmstrom, 10.-8, 1-0, 7-5, 8-6. Menzel beat Garoll, 6-2, 0-0, 5-7, 845. This match has an added interest us the winners are now to meet New Zealand at Prague, and the contest has to be decided by 13th June. From the match with Sweden it is easily seen that Kozeluh is the star, and that the other Slovakians are not so good. •If. Andrews can defeat Kozeluh there is just a chance that New Zealand may win. In 1924 Kozeluh with M. Zemin played against j. C. Peacock and F. M. B. Fisher, and' won 4-6, 6-3, 6-8, G-2, 7-5. Kozeluh did not play in the singles that year, but according to reports has improved in his singles play, and in last year's Davis Cup contests lie won all his singles. When playing J. Washer (Belgium) he had a close call, and in the first and Mocoud sets tho Belgian champion held him comfortably from the base line with magnificent drives, so that' when, the Slovakian attempted to storm the net he was briliantly passed. Washer won those two sets at G-2, 6-3, but Kozeluh took the third at 7-5. Then'an uproar among1 the crowd over a linesman's decision upset Washer, and he never regained his concentration. Kozeluh evened the sets .by winning the fourth set at 8-6, and he ran away with the .fifth set, GO. "Austral," in "The Referee," states that E. D. Andrews, the New Zealander, is the most stylish and promising player in Australia or New Zealand. • 1 A Reason for Defeat. Upon hearing that Italy had defeated Australia, Tilden is reported to have .said that the Australians had not sufficient time to become accustomed to tho hard courts in Italy. -As it happens the Australians not only played in a championship meeting at Rome, but -were reported to be doing fine. Certainly Patterson was beaten by J. Kozeluh, the Slovakian, 64, 6-3. Kozeluh, according to the cables, beat Patterson "mainly as result of Patterson's weakness on his backhand." An Australian writer will not have that and contends it is a stock remark by cable writers. It may be a stock remark, but nevertheless Patterson's loop-the-loop backhand is a decided'weakness when up against a really.good player., Anyone .who has seen Patterson play knows that his great weakness is his backhand, and that it has frequently let him down in big tennis. Crawford did splendidly to beat Kozeluh in the final, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3. Hopman, the other Australian, after winning against Del Bonoi 6-3, 6-3, and Serventi, 6-0, 6-2, both of-Italy, was blown out by.Gentien (France), 7-5, 6-1. Crawford beat' Gentieh comfortably. In the doubles Patterson and Crawford beat Grahm and Grotenfelt, the Finland Davis Cup pair, recently beaten by the English players, and Hawkes and Hopman, beat Serventi and De Martino. Gentien and Thurmyson beat Hawkes and Hopman in the semifinal, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, but Patterson and Crawford accounted for the winners, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3, in the final. Before going to Rome the Australians played in the South of France. From this it can be.'Seen that Crawford was in fine fettle, but by the time the Davis Cup match was due he had lost all his form owing to a sharp and sudden illuess.- Reverting to Tilden'a remarks, one cannot help but think back to what the great American champion said a little while ago in regard to playing on, grass or hard courts. On that occasion he contended that a great player—a real champion at the game^—should never blame the court provided it was a good court, whether a grass or hard one. After a few games any really good player would get the feel of any good court, and great players were quick to adapt themselves to what was provided—if they did not, then they were not what one would term really "great" players. These may not be Tilden's actual words, but they are near enough to show his reasoning. Now, he blames the hard courts for Australia's defeat, but.seeing that the Australians had had considerable practice before the Davis Cup matches, one hardly knows how to take Tilden's yes-no comments. He, of course, has 'been telling the world that he and Hunter should have two months in Europe before having to play against France in the challenge round, consequently he may be using Australia's defeat to back that up. Tennis in England. Miss Ryan, the American player, and Norman Brookes, won the mixed doubles at Regent's Park recently. They beat' Lady Crossfield and Colonel Mayes in the semi-final, 6-4, 4-6, G-l,- and in the final put out Mrs. Cobb and Gregory, 6-1, 6-3. In the semi-final of the men's ' doubles Brookes and Mayes beat F. M. B. Fisher and Spence, 0-7, 7-5, but in the final Higgs and Gregory won, 6-2, 64. In the women's tests for the annual match against the United States for the Wightman Cup, Miss Eileen Bennett beat Mies Betty Nuthall, 6-3, G-l; beat Miss Peggy Saunders, 6-2, 6-2; and beat Mrs. Watson, 6-3, 9-7. Miss Saunders beat Miss Joan Fry, 0-6, 8-6, 6-1; and beat Miss Goldsack, 64, 6-1. Miss Nuthall beat Miss Goldsack, 6-0, 7-5; and beat Miss .Fry, G-3, 6-2. Mrs. Watson beat Miss Goldsack, li-1, 6-1. and beat Miss Fry. 6-2, G-0. Miss Joan Ridley beat Mrs. M'llnuhan, G4, 0-3; and boat Miss Sterry, 8-6, 64. Mrs. M.M.Jqulinu beat Miss Sterry, 9-7, G-l. In the doubles Mrs. Watson and Miss Nuthall beat Mrs. Lycott and Harvey, 6-1, 3-6, 6-2, and Misses Fry and Colyer beat Misses Bennett and Ridley, 6-4, d-G, 6-2.