N.Z. Championships Continued

Northern Advocate, 3 January 1939, Page 3

N.Z. Championships Continued

Tennis

F Per Press Association.—-Copyright.} CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. The .annual New Zealand lawn tennis championship tournament was commenced on Saturday and continued on Sunday.

The enforced withdrawal of Miss Margaret Beverley, holder of three titles, is most unfortunate. Sap was injured in a motor car accident cn Sunday. The Aucklanders, N. G. Sturt and J. T. Mayson were eliminated from the men’s doubles by H. Dymond and I. J. Cornish. This was a surprise

result. Four players have reached the quarter-finals of the men’s singles,

and eight others will play for the re-

maining four places. Those who have reached the last eight are the defending champion, A. D. Brown (Canterbury), N. V. Edwards (Wellington), who defeated N, F. Bedford (Auckland! the eighth seeded player, Sturt (Auckland)/ and C. Angus (Canterbury). ‘ ' • - - ' •' Brown had no difficulty in beating C. B. Beatsori (Nelson) and W, J. Sfiiith (Otago), each in straight sets. ; i h: Edwards Impresses.

Edwards,whose ’ polished stroke play -created very - favourable com-* ment, first beat R. J. Donkin, former Canterbury junior champion. His win. over Bedford was well,deserved. Sturt had no difficulty in beating two' Canterbury players—X R. Crawshaw and S. Watson —the latter hav-' ing gained a good win in the first round over N. A. Morrison, a Wellington rank man.

Angas was too steady for B, J. Kelly, a Wellington junior, Who played some fine" shots, but he w,as in danger of defeat in his next match, when he met M. J. Souter.

R. G. Pattinsoh, runner-up to A. D. Brown last year, and fifth seeded player in the present tourney; met a strong opponent in R. Ferkins (Wellington), in the‘ first round. The young Canterbury player dropped the first set, but, with ,a fine battery of stinging drives and deft volleys; he swepf through the last three sets quite convincingly. ; Pattinsoh had an even harder match in the second round, when, after a great struggle, he defeated S. Painter, Wellingtdrr (present N. : Z; junior champion). Painter has thoroughly justified his early promise. He hady indeed a great chance of bedting Pattinson, for in a close fifth set he broke through Pattinson’S service for a 4—3 lead; ! lonly to drop his own delivery in the next game, f Mayson’s Good Play.

; Apart from' Brown; who" has not yet been fully tested, the most impressive play came; from J. T. Mayson, the young Aucklander who ‘recently won the Canterbury, singles and doubles titles. Mqyson dropped a set to the sound Canterbury man, : L. Morris, in the - first round, arid, although he was taken to five sets by A. E. Roussell, of Wellington, he played ko confidently and efficiently in the first, third and fifth sets of this match that he did not at any time seem likely to be beaten.

The ladies’ singles event has been reduced to eight competitors, and two seeded -players, apart' from Miss Margaret Beverley, - have - been eliminated. The defeat of Miss Nessie Beverley yesterday afternoon by Miss H. Eltham was the- - biggest surprise of the tournament to date. Some indication of the possibilities of the latter players may be -gained from their match in the Canterbury championships, when Miss Eltham-took a set from Miss Beverley with just the same- forceful play that won for her yesterday. Again she lost the first set, and won the second, but this time she refused to surrender the initiative in the 'final session. Instead, she kept on shooting stinging forehand drives into the corners.