BADMINTON

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22294, 21 June 1934, Page 4

BADMINTON

By Shuttle. All the affiliated clubs, Dunedin, United and Twenty, are now practising hard, the two latter clubs having returned to their court* on Monday evening after a lapse of three weeks, caused by the occupation of Brydone Hall by the Otago A. and B. Society and the Dunedin Fanciers’ Club s shows. All the players are showing great keenness, and the forthcoming contests in the Otago Badminton Association’s A Grade competition should provide some hard-fought games. # • Under the enthusiastic guidance of Mr C. H. Chapman, Dunedin’s latest club, the Windsor Club, is being well and truly launched. With a membership list that is rapidly reaching its maximum the club commenced play in Brydone Hall on Tuesday, and will continue playing on Tuesday and Thursday of each week. As it has at present only two court*, it is necessary that the membership be somewhat restricted, but under the expert tutelage of Mr Chapman the members should rapidly establish themeelye* in the forefront of badminton in Dunedin.

I The junior chip which Mr Brookes pro- ! poses to organise wilL it is understood, not play in Fuller Hall, a* was stated last week, but will probably have the use of the Windsor Club's courts when that club ig not using them. There i» also a suggestion that a ladies’ afteraooii club might noon be formed, which will also have the use of the Windsor courts. A movement is on foot to arrange for one period a week in which the best and the most promising players of each cliib can have the opportunity of playing together. This is an excellent idea, as it will mean that the really good players of each club will be able to meet opponents of their own mettle, with a consequent improvement in their game. Constant practice with players who can not step it with the best soon tends to slow down even a champion’s game, and this move will certainly have the result of , keeping the good performer* up to. the mark.

The New Zealand Badminton Federation has approved of the Otago Badminton Association’s application for dates in August, 22, 23, and 25, on which to hold the South Island championships. The Otago championships will also be held at the same time, so that local players have something to work for. Representatives i arc expected from Christchurch, Tim&ru, and Invercargill. BRITISH CHAMPIONSHIPS , The championships controlled by the English National Badminton Association were held recently, and interesting com- • ment i« made on the performances of some of the most prominent of the players by L. C. Radeglia, in Tennis Illustrated. In the early rounds of the Men’s Singles D. Hume, one of the British stars/ and R. .White, both played below their best, and in the semi-finals were eliminated respectively by T. Dick (Cheshire) and R. G. F. Nichols. Dick, particularly, was in great form, playing a fine, aggressive game, which enabled him to defeat L. Nichols, who was bustled out of his usual accuracy. In the Women’s Singles the Misses X. and T. Kingsbury came through . their respective halves without much difficulty, Miss L, Kingsbury defeating Mrs Über in the semi-fihals with unexpected ease. Hume and White always looked likely winners, their attack and combination giving them an easy passage to the final. In the Women’s Doubles, Mrs Myers and Miss Speaight defeated, among others, Mrs Barrett and Mrs Wheateley, and Mrs Horsley and Miss L. Kinsbury, so fully deserved their place in the final, which they took for the third year. in succession.

The'finals were disappointing, none of the matches providing any thrills, either in play or in closeness of the score. In the Men’s Singles, T. Dick, who bad been in great form earlier in the week,, defeating in succession L. Nichols and D. Hume without, the loss of, a set, played uncertainly against E. C. F. ,Nichols. He. appeared frequently to mis-play his strokes by hitting too soon, and a number of his returns w*fere very wide of the .conn. Nichols’s steady returning of his hardest smashes, however, must have been very disconcerting. Both player* scored frequently off the service by oblique smashes, and it looked as if either could have made things easier for himself when serving high by choosing the inside instead of the outside corner of the court as his objective. At the beginning of the second game Dick did very well for a time by serving low; but for some reason, after reaching 4 —o, he reverted to ‘ the high service he had employed throughout the first set. Nichols’s return' of smashes when he could not reach them until they. had almost touched the ground were marvellously accurate and controlled. He did not lose a set throughout the match, and struck ouo as a far stronger player than when he won the title in 1932. Miss L. Kingsbury won the Women’s Singles also without the loss of a set, and her sister. Miss T. Kingsbury, reached the final in the other half with similar ease. Some people, remembering that when the sisters had met in the semi-finals last year. Miss T. Kingsbury had been victorious, were inclined to favour her chances. But Miss L. Kingsbury has been playing a far stronger game this season than she did last, and won very easily at the score 11—4, 11—6. She knew all about Thelma Kingsbury’s fatal weakness in her backhand corner, and from the first directed her attack to that quarter. She was. however, playing a strong game all round, and in her present form a match between her and Mrs Teague would be a close one. The Mixed Doubles championship pro- - vided another victory for D. Hume add Mrs Über, who have not been defeated this season. They had. an exceedingly narrow escape in the semi-final against R. C. F. Nichols and Miss Stewart, who only lost in the third set at 18—16, a result due to Hume’s extra severity overhead. I. Maconachie and Mrs Horsley, who reached the final in the other half, bad a-series of three-set matches, and also had a very close game in the semi-final against E. M. White and Miss Armstrong, wimuug at 17—14 in the third game. The match in the final was of the “scratchy” variety, with Mrs Horsley the best of the four. The Men’s Doubles between Hume and • White and the two Nichols provided the only three-set match of the finals. Unfortunately by the time it was played the light wag decidedly bad and the erratic play by both sides at times was no doubt due to that fact, Hume and White at-tacked,-and, supported each others attack admirably, as usual, but the Nichols mannaged to win the second set by keeping the shuttle low and returning cleverly. For a few points ■•in the third game theyappeared to be holding their own with some prospect of making headway, but each brother in turn made some expensive mistakes—left services that fell in and rushed a couple into the net —and from that point the game was soon over. . The international match between Scotland and England provided a bloodless victory for England (9 events to nil), but for the losers J.'J. M'Curry and Miss J. ; Stewart, and F. C. Treasure and J. W. ■ Adams, ran their opponents to three close sets. '