LAWN TENNIS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3673, 5 August 1924, Page 48

LAWN TENNIS.

By

Smash.

By their defeat of the Kinsey brothers, 0—3,0—3, 3—6, 6—3, 6—B, 6—4, in the final of the Illinois State doubles championship last week Patterson ai.d O’Hara Wood demonstrated that they were getting into something like their true form. The Kinseys, who were the holders of the title, are the national clay court champions of America, and are considered to be probably the best doubles team in America. They were in excellent form, but were compelled to play a defensive game throughout. They were unable to handle Patterson’s cannon-ball service or Wood’s brilliant volleys and calculated lobs which won the decisive points. The Americans played well, but they were worn down by the Australians’ consistency. In the final of the singles Tilden beat Howard Kinsey by three sets to one, indicating also that his star is undimmed. It will be remembered that in the final of the singles at this tournament last year M. Alonzo defeated Tilden, B—6, 11—13, 6—3, 6—3. Both Patterson and Wood participated in the singles, but. the scores in the matches which witnessed their elimination were not cabled. At Brooklyn, in the New York metropolitan championships, Patterson and Wood emphasised their previous victory over the Kinsey brothers by defeating them in three sets, 9 7, 6—3. 6—4. Patterson also reached the final of the Singles without apparent difficulty, and here he defeated Harvey Snodgrass with comparative ease. 6 4, 6—4, 6-—2. Snodgras is a young player who has been prominent in American tournaments for some seasons past, and who is at present ranked eighth "in singles and ninth in doubles on the national listA. H. Chapin who partnered R. E Schlesinger of the Australian Davis Cup team, in the Amerioan clay court championships, had previously defeated his team mate in the Illinois tournament. At St Louis the pain were defeated in the semifinal by the ultimate winners—the Kinsey brothers. Tilden holds a very high opinion of Chapin, who, he states, “ is playing spectacular tennis and will, I believe, be the sensation of the season.” B. I. C. Norton who was also a competitor at this tournament, apparentlv did nothing sensational. Following upon her enforced retirement from the ladies’ singles championship at Wimbledon Mdlle Lenglen was interviewed while sitting in her hotel lounge muffled up in furs. “I am the most miserable girl in London,” she said. “Oh, it is all so, so tragic. The first signs were little twinges in the back during my match with Miss Ryan. I said, ‘They shan’t hurt,’ but as the game proceeded my side stiffened, and when I lifted my right arm it seemed as it a knife were being jabbed into my flesh. I tried so hard to prevent the crowd seeing that there was anything wrong. After the second set it was terrible. My eyes were affected, and I could hardly see the ball. I said to myself, ‘Never mind, it will be all right to-morrow,’ but I could not sleep for the agony. The doctor says I have strained my liver, seriously, he is afraid.” Mr Hillyard (secretary of the All-England Club) said: “Mdlle Lenglen’s decision waa inevitable, and I hope that nobody will be unfair enough to suggest that her retirement has been due to any cause other than illness.” Miss Ryan, whom Mdlle Lenglen narrowly defeated in her last match and who is one of the French girl’s closest friends, said to-day: “Suzanne was never guilty of an unsporting action in her life.” Had Miss M'Kane not been unexpectedly defeated by Mdlle Vlasto at the Olympio Games she would probably have contested the final with Miss Wills, who had beaten her twice in America and had been defeated by her once in England. These two players first met during the tour of America which was made by a team of English ladies last year, and in the international match in August Miss Wills won. 6—2. 7 5. As a matter of fact, the American team won the whole of the seven matches played. A month later Miss Wills and Miss M‘Kane again met in the fourth round of the American Singles Championship, and in some respects the match rather closely resembled that at Wimbledon a few weeks ago. Miss M'Kane won the first set and lost the second by the equally decisive margins of 6—2 and 2—6 respectively. In the final set Miss Wills went forward to lead by s—l,s—l, and then lapsed, allowing her opponent to draw level. But after “5 all ’ it was Miss M'Kane who failed, and Miss Wills who “came back.” The former served two double faults in the eleventh game- a fatal concession at such a crisis; and Miss Wills, playing with great determination, took the twelfth game and the match. Commander G. W. Ilillyard’s recentlypublished book, “Forty Years of Lawa Tennis,” quotes from a leading article on the death of H. L. Doherty, and the comment furnishes a striking tribute to that great player. The extract is as follows“ The death of H L. Doherty is a loss to the lawn tennis community, hut it is more than that. .Doherty was a great lawn tennis player, many say the greatest that has been seen, Lut from the national point of view his technical capacity was but one of his recommendations, and not the greatest. With him there was no possibility of unpleasant “incidents”; he was too true a sportsman to commit an ungenerous act deliberately, too cool to seize in the excitement of the moment an advantage he might subsequently regret. Defeat at his hands lost half its sting, for he was courtesy itself; and if defeat were his own portion he accepted it with the same equanimity which had made it so difficult to bring about. He played an Englsh game in the spirit in which Englishmen think games should be played. He was a typical Englishman, and it is a source of legitimate pride to his countrymen that we can call him so.” Writing somewhat strongly to the Daily Mail on the subject of foot-faulting, Mr J. H. Farmer, ex-president of the Norfolk Lawn Tennis Association, says: “When an Act of Parliament is daily—hourly—-broken by hundreds and the Treasury but- rarely prosecute, the morals of the nation demand its repeal and the enactment of a measure which the public will obey. This, the most popular of all games, suffers grievously from this deeply-rooted canker—thanks to the blindness or the cowardice of umpires and linesmen. If I am a spectator at Wimbledon or Queen’s, or if I umpire in tournaments in this country or abroad, there I see the disease raging "blatantly, defiantly, and If the server is ‘faulted’ the offender too often flings a threatening glare at the umpire! Wagging the right foot over the line before service as a preliminary to a kangaroo bound into court has become stereotyped. Foot-fault-ing is taking a very mean advantage of

an opponent, and is as dishonest as “throwing’ at cricket.” The latest issue to hand of American Lawn j ennis contains a summary of the player-writer controversy, which, to use the editor s own words, is marked by “meticulous accuracy and adherence to the truth.” The player-writer “interpretation.” or definition, it is recalled, was passed at the last annual meeting of the United States Lawn Tennis Association, and following upon mis the Amateur Kule Committee issued a report which characterised the player-writers as breakers of the amateur rule, and declared that the champion (Tilden) was a “bad influence,” and that his writing was an “evil.” The champion resigned from the Davis Cup and Olympic Games squads, and his resignation was accepted. The sentiment of the country was soon made evident, and it led to a special meeting of the association to review, rescind, or reconsider the legislation in question. rhe champion stated that the day such special meeting was called he would be ready to play if asked to do so. The president of the association called a special meeting of the Executive Committee, and shortly before that committee a proposal was put. forward to “expunge” the “interpretation” and appoint a special committee to prepare a new amateur rule for submission to the next annual meeting. When the Executive Committee met it. after a long debate, adopted this proposal by voting unanimously to do nothing in the way of enforcing the “interpretation” until the next annual meeting and in the rceatime to appoint a committee to report on the whole subject. Under these circumstances Tilden withdrew his resignation from the Davis Cup team, and the whole storm subsided. DAVIS CUP MATCHES. COPENHAGEN, July 27. In the Davis Oup preliminary Czechoslovakia beat Denmark by three matches to two. CANADA BEATS CUBA. OTTAWA, July 26. Banet defeated Wright 4—6, 6 —4, 6 —o, 3—6, 6—4, but the Canadian team qualified to meet Japan in the next round of the American zone matches by Crocker's win over the Cuban champion (Paris) 6—3, 7—5, 6—3. FRANCE REACHES EUROPEAN FINAL, LONDON, July 29. At Eastbourne France earned the right to meet Czecho-Slovakia in the Davis Oup European final, defeating Britain by tour matches to one. In the doubles Borotra and Brugnon (France) beat Woosnam and Godfree (Britain) 6—4, 4 —6, 6 —3, 6—l. In the singles Gilbert (Britain) beat Cochet 5—7, I—6, 9—7, B—6, 6—2, and Lacoste (France) beat Kingscote 6 —6, 3—6, 3—6, 6—2, 6—4. WOOD DEFEATS PATTERSON. NEW YORK, July 29. At Seabright in an exhibition singles match O’Hara Wood defeated Patterson 6—2, o—6, 6—4. AUSTRALIA v. CHINA. NEW YORK, July 30. The official draw for the match between Australia and China is as follows:—First Day.—Patterson v. W. Loch Wei; O’Hara Wood v. Paul Kwong; second day—Patterson and Wood v. Loch Wei and C. K. Huang ; third day—Patterson v. Kwong; Wood v. Loch Wei. July 31. In the Davis Cup preliminary tie between Australia and China G. L. Patterson defeated W. Loch Wei 6—l, 6 —2, 6—2. O'Hara Wood defeated P. Kwong 6—o, 6—l, 6—2. There was only a handful of spectators. Loch Wei was totally unable to handle Patterson’s service. At first he ran up courageously but ineffectively to the net. Then he took to the baseline without success. Wei’s small stature was a handicap against the Australian’s great reach and command of the court. Patterson became temporarily erratic and inaccurate in the second set, but it made little difference. In the third set Wei tried to change his pace, and made intermittent crosscourt shots, which _ caused his opponent to race about a little, but did not occasion him serious discomfort.—A. and A.Z. Cable. The match between Wood and Kwong began amidst lowering clouds, and rain seemed a matter of moments. Kwong was larger than his team mate. He also played more vigorously, but he was fearfully nervous and erratic and wholly unable to touch Wood’s service without driving out. In the second set he sometimes scored surprisingly by breaking through his opponent’s service with fine back-hand strokes and cross-court drives, but he made many double faults. Both men plaved the back-of-the-court game, m which the Australian was superior. In the third set Wood frequently passed Kwong, who, like Wei, attempted sporadically to play up at the net. August 2. By winning the doubles 6—l, 6—2, 6 —o the Australians defeated China in the Davis Cup, and will now meet the Mexican team. Patterson and Wood faced Wei and Huang. The latter is left-handed, and has a volcanic drive. Once again the Chinamen could not cope with Patterson's service, and, moreover, the Australians pLced their returns where their opponents were unable to reach them. Huang showed that he was a player of promise, but in attempting to put top spin on bis shots he drove them low. In the second set the Australians were at the top of their form. Wood's crosscourt strokes being both brilliant and effective. In the third set the Chinamen frequently made the fatal mistake of lobbing, and Patterson’s overhead smashes

never failed. The Australians profited from their greater experience. In the remaining singles Patterson defeated Kwong 6 —o, 6—l, 6—l. Patterson's service twisted his opponent mto knots, and the latter’s service was weak. O’Hara Wood defeated Loch Wei 6—o, 60, 6 —2. The Australian had little difficulty in finishing off Wei, in fact, he hardly got warmed up. THE BROOKLYN TOURNAMENT. NEW YORK, July 26. Patterson won the metropolitan singles championship by defeating Harvey Snodgrass 6—4, 6—4, 6—2. The match showed the Australian’s superiority clearly. Snodgrass, who is the Southern Californian champion, has. been playing brilliant tennis this season. He was unable, however, to withstand Patteron’s volcanic service and volleying. Snodgrass tired quickly, but he attempted to confuse the Australian by soft lobbing and a tricky change of pace, but he was unsuccessful. Patterson played a game surprisingly free from errors. Patterson and Wood defeated V\ estbrook and Snodgrass in the doubles semifinals 6—l, 6—3, 7 —5. Patterson and O’Hara Wood won the Metropolitan Doubles Championships, repeating their feat at Glencoe by defeating Kinsey brothers 9—7, 6—3, 6—4, after a brisk battle, in which the Australians showed themselves accurate and speedy, overcoming more easily than before the brothers by smooth team work. BRITAIN AND FRANCE. LONDON, July 28‘. At Eastbourne the Davis Cup "doubles were postponed until to-morrow owing to rain. KINGSCOTE TO RETIRE. LONDON, July 28. The Daily Chronicle says that Kingscote is definitely retiring after the Davis Cup matches against France. AN EXHIBITION MATCH. NEW YORK, July 23. At Seabright (New Jersey), in an exhibition doubles match G-. L. Patterson and CHara Wood defeated Karl Behr and Dean Mathey, 7—5, 6—2. TPIE DAVIS CUP. NEW ZEALANDERS AT PRAGUE. (Fboji Otjh Own Correspondent.) LONDON, June 17. Although the two veteran tennis players who represented New Zealand in the Davis Cup tournament at Prague were not able to carry away the honours, the three matches in which they played were all very closely contested. Mr J. C. Peacock, Mr F. M. B. Fisher, and Dr P. E. Allison (emergency) travelled to Czecho-Slovakia by way of Folkestone and Flushing, through Dresden, and down the valley of the Elbe, a journey which they thoroughly enjoyed. They were rather surprised with the beauty of the scenery and the wonderful cultivation in the province of Bohemia. As far as they Could judge, the country right through was prosperous. As it was not decided until the last moment whether the contest should take place at Torquay or at Prague, the visitors had only three days in which to practice at Prague. The courts on which the tournaments were played were not those on which they practised, and had only been completed the day before the opening event. The earth cut up rather badly, but, of course, all the players were handicapped by tbe same circumstances. “Otherwise,” said Mr Peacock, in relating their experience, “the arrangements were most complete. The umpires were most satisfactory, the ball boys were the best trained I have met with, and the conduct of the match accessories were all excellent. There were 2000 people each day to witness the play, and the spectators were most impartial in their sympathies and applause. All our opponents, t-00, were most sportsmanlike. Everything wag provided for our comfort.” One of the difficulties that the visitors experienced was the language. Very little English and French were spoken, and although the people practically all speak German they dislike doing so. The secretary of the local tennis association spoke a l'(tie English, and a Russian who had been an officer in the Russian Guards and was a tennis player and a good linguist came to the New Zealanders’ assistance. At the final dinner given to the Swiss team and the New Zealand team the chairman spoke m Czceho-Slovakian. the Swiss captain in French, and Mr Peacock in English, and though it is probable that those most- concerned with the respective speeches did not understand a word, everybody was happy and pleased. The tennis players were received bv M. Tomas Masarvk, the President of the republic, and afterwards had an opportunity of going over the palace, and the British Ambassador (Sir George Clerk), who was official referee for the tournament, also gave a dinner and a dance, which everyone very much enjoyed. In the first match —Fisher against Rohrer —the play was verv even. The score stood at two sets all. In the fifth set Fisher won the first three games. Then, his opponent crept up until they were four all. At this stage the New Zealand plaver broke his racquet, which may have had something to do with the final result. At any rate, the set finished at 6 —4 in favour of Rohrer. In the other singles—Peacock v. Zembla the play was very even, but resulted in the Czeeho-Slovakian’s favour—7—s, 6—4, 7Zembla and Kozoluk met Peacock and Fisher in the doubles, and this again was a fine match. The score worked up to two sets all. In the fifth set the New Zealanders gained three games to their opponents’ one. but the latter worked up and won the set by seven games to five, ""'-e loss of these three matches put the New Eealanders out of the running for the semi-final of the European section of the avis Cup. All tnree New Zealanders, as well ns as the Swiss players, were invited to take 1 part in the Czecho-Slovakian championships. They remained for a few days, but the weather was unfavourable, and, having to get back to England at a certain date, they retired from the contests.