Top Four Reach Squash Semi-Finals

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31118, 22 July 1966, Page 12

Top Four Reach Squash Semi-Finals

“The Press” Special Service TIMARU. The semi-final matches in the men’s open event at the New Zealand squash rackets championships will be as scheduled. The first four seeded players came through the quarter-final matches without a loss of a game between them at Timaru yesterday.

D. Burmeister, seeded first, plays P. Dibley, fourth, and the only South Island hope, G. L. Bird, meets T. C. Johnston.

One unseeded woman has reached the last four, Mrs J. Walker, an Australian veteran, who will meet Miss P. Mills, of Hamilton, the top seed. Mrs H. Corporall and Miss C. Fleming (Auckland) contest the other half. Bird played two matches yesterday, experiencing none of the difficulties of only a few seasons ago with I. T. Easton. H e did not perform particularly well against J. Stevens, and all three games were hard and intense. He required the co-operation of his opponent, who made needless errors from the middle of the game, when Bird was in hand.

Of Bird’s 19 errors, 14 were in touch play, and in six games yesterday he hardly found the nick, suggesting that his drives will need to improve in accuracy. A game in hand could have made Stevens a very difficult proposition, for Bird appeared to have had enough at the end. J. S. Walker’s efforts fori

two sets against P. Dibley closely resembled Stevens's game. He went for many winners and was right in the match before he made three or four mistakes in succession. G. A. Davidson made the play against Burmeister, but he clearly would not have been fit enough to win. Davidson was often perfection in accuracy when the ball was in the air, and his pacey drives forced Burmeister to demonstrate his fine court coverage. Results:— Men's Championship

Second Round.—P. Dibley (Remuera) beat B. J. Rippin (T:maru), 9-3, 9-3, 9-1: G. L. Bird (Tlmaru) beat I. Easton (Hamilton), 9-3, 9-0, 9-0.

Quarter-finals. —D. Burmeister (Palmerston North) beat G. A. Davidson (Ashburton). 9-3, 9-0, 9-5; Dibley beat J. S. Walker (Hamilton), 9-6, 9-6, 9-0: Bird beat J. Stevens (Remuera), 9-6, 9-3, 9-5: T. L. Johnston (Palmerston North) beat J. N. Isaacs (Mitchell Park, Wellington), 9-1, 9-7, 9-7.

Women's Championship Quarter-finals. —Miss P. Mills (Hamilton) beat Mrs P. Leopold (Christchurch), 9-0, 9-2, 9-0: Miss J. Walker (Australia) beat Mrs J. Legg (Henderson), 9-4, 9-3. 10-9; Mrs H. Corporall (Remuera) beat Miss B. Heaton (Mitchell Park), 9-1, 9-5, 9-4: Miss C. Fleming (North Shore) beat Miss T. Lawes (Mitchell park), by default.