CHAMPIONS FALL

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 47, 24 February 1934, Page 20

CHAMPIONS FALL

ROUSSELL'S FINE WIN

THE THORNDON SURPRISES

Save for the Wellington Association's Easter Tournament the local tennis seemed virtually finished when the double surprise in the Thorndou Club's championship last Saturday, put new interest into the event. E. A. Eoussell beat C. E. Maifroy by two sets to one and N. Smith defeated D. G. Franco by the same score. The two best players in New Zealand both went down on the same day to men who had never beaten them before, \n each case, too, the victor lost the first set, so that tho wins were particularly meritorious. Smith's victory may be summed up as the -revelation of superior groundstrokes on the day and the fact that he was able to.keep Frnnce from the net. Eoussell 's,. however, was more than that, for he pulled up from an adverse position in the second set and defeated Maifroy by sheer brilliance in passing shots and by consistent volleying. It is the first really big win that Eoussell has had, though he. has had good success and for some time' been counted a player to be reckoned with.. It is almost certainly the forerunner of more successes, and it indicates that Wellington tennis is now.out of the stage where sue or two players' will dominate the scone, as has been ■ the case for the past ton years, and that there will be an interesting and open field in future. "■''•' '