AUSTRALIAN TENNIS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18827, 30 September 1924, Page 9

AUSTRALIAN TENNIS.

DAVIS CUP PROSPECTS.

YOUNGER PLAYERS NEEDED.

COMPETENT COACHING VITAL.

; The repeated failure of the Australian tennis team to wrest the Davis Cup from the American holders, after reaching the finals in opposition to tennis representatives of the leading nations of the world, was discussed briefly yesterday by Mr.: Harry W. Maloncy, associate-director of physical education at Stanford University, who arrived from Sydney by the E.M.S. Makura with the Stanford tennis team. Mr. Maloney is the manager of the team, which comprises Ted Mertz (captain), Dick Hinckley, Norman do Back and Harold Ovcrfelfc.

While in Australia, said Mr. Maloney, the Stanford team had played 22 matches, winning the lest match against, the combined Universities of Australia, and losing but few of tho remainder. Strangely enough, the lost matches were played at small centres, and Mr. Maloney attributed the defeats to tho fact that ton tho team was required to travel long distances and play on courts which differed in character and condition from those, previously used. Nevertheless, tho team enjoyed every moment of the tour, and found the Australians most hospitable. In fact, it seemed as if tho Australians were afraid they wore not doing enough to entertain tho players. He mentioned that when the team returned -to headquarters at Palo Alto they would have travelled 20,000 miles, and although Stanford had sent athletic teams to all parts of the world this would constitute a record.

Mr. Maloney said ho was astonished at the vogue of tennis in Australia, and no less surprised to find the number of courts in use in the principal cities. He had been given to understand there were 8000 courts m Sydney, and 6000 in Melbourne, while Brisbane had its quota in like ratio. He contrasted this s with the huge city of San Francisco, where there were probably not more than 75 courts. . Yet San Francisco had produced such outstanding players as Maurice McLaughlin, W. M. Johnston, tho Kinsey Brothers, " Peck " Griffin, Halm, Lindley Murray, Miss Sutton, Miss Helen Wills, and many others. This led Mr. Maloney to say that while i the Australians were getting into the finals i of the Davis Cup they were not quite good J enough to take the blue ribbon. From I his experience on the present trip he j could say that Australia had unusual tennis talent, but the young players would have to bo taken in hand by the older players and taught the modern game from the ground up. It seemed to him that tho resent representative players of Australia ad the science, but they were too old. He thought these men must sacrifice something for the game of tennis and get out and coach the young players in the fundamental features of the game. Lawn tennis, he remarked, was a peculiar game in that if a player overlooked a certain technique in the early stages, he could not go back and. start again. The suggestion which Mr. Maloney made in regard to Australia was that a competent coach should be appointed by the Federal Government and allowed to take in hand the promising material in, the schools and universities. "I do not suggest they should have in mind the Davis Cup team of next year, or even the following year," he said, " but if they take the' youngsters in hand I am certain that in three or four years they are going to take that cup." " . '