LAWN TENNIS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15551, 7 March 1914, Page 10

LAWN TENNIS.

NOTES AND COMMENTSThe secondary schools' championship tounfam-ent will be commenced this morning at half-past nine o'clock on the Eden and Epsom Club's lawns. Competitors are requested to be ready to play immediately thev aro called upon. The tournament will again le under the control of Messrs. r. J. Ohlson and L. Sheppard, who will be glad of the assistance of any players who can find it convenient to attend at the Eden and Epson lawns this morning. The final round of inter-club matches will be played this afternoon. In the A section of the first grade West End 1. plays Pafnell and Remuera plays Auckland. In the B section Devonport plays Onehunga I. and Onehunga 11. plays Otahuhu 1. Contrary to expectations, the final ot the North Sydney championship between A. B. Jones "and J. 0. Anderson did not furnish a very high-class exhibition of the game. Both players were patchy right through, and mistakes were altogether too numerous. Anderson started off very decisively, while Jones was always steady, but took some time to stay the attack. However, after 4 all had been called in the first sot, Jones held the advantage, and by experience and excessive patience quite undermined Anderson s game. The

latter player tried furious and reckless , driving., but all to no avail, and Jones ran out a winner, 6—4, —1. Anderson played probably "the poorest game he has played in an important match since he came to the front last year, and little else can be said of Jones,' who in recent years has seldom given such an indifferent exhibition. . . ... , The Australasian Association did not favour several of the proposed alterations of the Davis Cup regulations submitted for its consideration by the Lawn Tennis Association (England). In one matter, namely, the definite recognition of hard courts, it went further than tb object to the suggestion by recommending that turf only should be employed. It is a great / pity that such a provision was not made when the Davis Cup regulations were framed. No doubt it was thought superfluous at the time. With the advent of the Continental and other nations, th* position has v completely changed. It is necessary for any alteration to be agreed to by two-thirds of the which have competed for the Davis Cup, and_ which shall record their votes. Nine nations have taken part in these matches, and 1 amongst the number are Austria,, Belgium, Prance, Germany, and South Africa, all of which employ hard courts exclusively. It is therefore highly improbable that the requisite majority favourable to turf will J be obtainable. Still, the recommendation " will at least show Australasia's attitude ' on the matter of surface. It is strange , that none of the Continental nations have , adopted turf courts.' There should be no difficulty in providing grass courts, for ' which the climate in the majority .of them . is more suited than that of England. Custom is probably responsible for the vogue of the hard court amongst the Continental ' nations. If they could be brought by I experience to realise the greater enjoyment - to be derived from playing on good turf, i their representatives would most likely be a as strong advocates of it as 'are the Aust tralasians. In this part of the world it is , difficult to find a player who docs not f prefer to play on grass. The foothold is 7 better, and the bound of the ball on good i turf is quite as uniform as on hard courts, £ and generally the game on grass is bettor, " and more enjoyable all round. ? The association also objected to the proposed regulation governing the qualificar tion of players, the most important pro--1 vision of which was that when once a

player had represented a nation he should always be eligible for that 'nation, and should play for no other. In objecting very properly to this, the Australasian Association did so against their own interests, as, if carried, it would ensure Wilding ever playing against us, not that Tie has shown any desire to do so. Hardship might well occur, say, in the case of a young Englishman, who, having played cinder a residential qualification for one of the colonies, returns to his native land. He would be shut out of Davis Cup competitions for all time unless required by the country for which he had played first, though all his "sympathies might be with the land of his birth. The proposal to eliminate the right of a captain to alter his team at any moment p'-ior to the commencement of a contest was also objected to. It would be interesting to hear what arguments may be brought in favour of tho proposed "alteration. Certainly it was proposed to give the referee power to sanction such alteration of a team in the event of any player being incapacitated by illness, accident, or other unavoidable hindrance, but that does not cover all the cases in which the substitution of one player for another might reasonably be made. There seems to be no viid reason why a captain should not select his men at the last moment, for he is then in a position to make the best selection, taking weather and other considerations"'' iiito account at the same time The existing regulation has_worked admir ably, and the policy of ttie Australasian Association to let well alone is to be commended. At the suggestion of its president, Mr. P. B. Colquhoun, M.L.A., the association recommended that the referee be given power to suspend play if the players were interfered with, or their attention distracted, by noise or other hindrance, caused by spectators or others. This recommendation was suggested by an occur rence when he was referee in one of the Davis Cup matches in Australia.

AUCKLAND V. REMUERA. The following will represent the Auckland Club against Remuera this afternoon : — Men's Singles : Webster, H. Snelling, Milnes, C. Johns. Ladies' Singles : Miss Woodroff, Miss MacLoughlan. Men's Doubles : H. Snelling and Milne#, Webster and Hope, C. Johns and V. Johns. Ladies' Doubly : Misses Woodroff and MacLoughlan, Misses Calvert and McElwain. Combined Doubles : Hope and Miss Calvert. Johns and! Miss McElwain. I ~ * — = - V