LAWN TENNIS

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 112, 9 February 1928, Page 8

LAWN TENNIS

WELLINGTON CHAMPIONSHIPS

(By

"Forehand”).

THE LADIES Miss M. East. Miss M. East has won the Wellington provincial championship for the first time and at no time up to the final, when slit, beat Miss D. Howe, was her game up to championship form. She was exceedingly lucky to beat Miss Brewster, who foolishly changed a winning game and then, at 4 all in the hist set, had to play the next two games against the strong northerly wind. Against Miss Brewster and Miss Brady, Miss East merely kept the ball in play and waited for the opponent to make the mistake. The ral lies in her match with Miss Brady were interminably long, and as most, if not all, the forcing was being done by Miss Brady she it was who made the most mistakes. So, too, Miss Brewster in the round before, developed the fatal habit of forcing instead of maintaining her very clever placing game with variation in length of shot that time and again quite left Miss East lost. Against Miss Howe Miss East played really fine tennis—tennis which, in all the times I have seen her play, she only once before produced—when she defeated a far from well Miss North in anothei championship final two or three seasons ago. While in the finM last week Miss East played her best g*»me of the tournament, Miss Howe played by far her worst. How much she was below form may be gathered from the fact that she was forty love in four games and lost all four. Perhaps never again will any opponent find Miss Howe quite so generous. Helped by Miss Howe’s inability to maintain even a pretence at length Miss East played with an abandon not usual with her in championship tennis and brought off many beautiful corner drives, and even, when Miss Howe played against the wind, made an isolated sortie to the net. Miss East is essentially a baseline player who, when hard pressed, takes absolutely no risks and plays for safety. That she can play a placing game I have already instanced two examples, but they are so exceptional in their circumstances as to furnish no precedent that that will remain her general game. She is a player who will remain on the court until she drops. All her strokes seem to be made with great effort, especially in serving, but the effort may be more apparent than real. One does not look for any variety in her game. I doubt now whether she could change it much even if she were inclined, or felt it necessary to do so.

Miss D. Howe. Miss D. Howe entered in six events and was in four finals and one semifinal, a record that surely speaks for itself. She lost the championship singles to Miss East, won the ladies’ championship doubles and handicap doubles (with Miss Brady), beating Miss East and her partner, Mrs. Burn, in the two events on the journey to the final, and lost the final of the mixed ehampionship with A. L. France, to D. G. France and Miss Travers. That latter match is regarded by competent observers to be one of the most spectacular, hard hitting, sharp volleying mixed doubles matches seen in Wellington for a long time, and one in which quarter was neither asked nor given. But for that marvellous return of D. G. France’s when he had to take both hands to the racket, when but for that point, A. L. France and Miss Howe would have led 5—3 in the third set, the match might have had a different ending, I am satisfied that my previous remarks concerning Miss Howe's play are just and her game is capable of a much greater improvement, and that it will so improve.

Miss Brady. Miss E. Brady is a player of strength and determination who cares little or nothing for the finer points of the game. She chases after everything and hits hard and often. She gives her opponent no rest except when a mistake (brought about by either party) occurs. She plays a very sporting game. To beat Mrs. Penlington she worked very hard indeed and never did she let up, even after the heartbreaking experience of having a game given against, her by an umpire’s mistake taking away from her what would have been a 5 —3 lead. She lost the game for 4 nil and then the set 5—7. Miss Brady plays a rugged type of game without frills, and all from the backline. Her footwork is not of the best, nor is always her court position. Like Miss D. Howe, she is far from home on grass, having been accustomed nearly all her playing career to hard courts. The tendency for such is to wait for the ball to come and then find themselves rushing headlong into it. There is a tendency in certain quarters not to do full justice to Miss Brady’s game, or to give her full credit for her victories.

Miss Travers. Miss E. Travers, I have repeatedly said, has the finest forehand drive of any lady player in New Zealand, and one more severe than many men who pride themselves on the severity of their driving. Her backhand, too, is a formidable weapon and her determination to fight to the end makes her an opponent to fear. Miss D. Howe did very well to beat her as some two or three hours earlier Miss Travers had completely outplayed Miss Ward, the Canterbury ranked player. Miss Travers plays entirely from the hackline and her forehand cross-court drives simply left Miss Howe helpless. But as the game developed Miss Howe put the ball less and less on Miss Travers’s forehand and concentrated ou the backhand the heavy cut causing Miss Travers a great deal of trouble. Plain shots she could deal with easily enough, but not screws.

Mrs. Penlington. Mrs. Penlington found Miss Brady both a worrier and a warrior. All that Miss Brady did seemed to go right. All that Mrs. Penlington did seemed to ga wrong. In going for the side-lines Mrs. Penlington, with the slice she puts into her stroke, outlet! n great deal. I have said elsewhere that a good length does not necessarily mean a deep hall ; that that may indeed be the worst thing; the short ball may be. the best length for a given occasion. That was Mrs. Pen lington's chief fault against Miss Brady. Iler length was too consistently deep. There was not enough variety in it. But the very nature of the cut Mrs. Penliugton puts on her drive compels the bull to be deep. Iler type of game makes the ball float. The strong northerly wind miiile overhead work risky, anil there again Airs. Penlington was robbed of much of the chief strength of her game. Miss 11. I. Dorman.

Miss H. 1. Dorman has a fine forehand drive, and a good backhand, and a difficult service, and. occasionally, a severe smash. Excluding her service, if these other shots were kept for the right ball instead of being used, as most usual with her, indiscriminately, her play would improve out of sight. Before she can drive bard she must have a hall that bounces nt least equid with U.e top of the net. It must not be lower ns her drive resembles a punch straight from the should’ r. She leaves very little margin to clear the net. An understanding of what ball on which to play her decisive shots is what she moslacks. Mrs. Burn. Mrs G. N. Burn is a much bettei player than slit is generally given credit for and she shows herself nt times a lb < net player, better in singles than m. rumbles She is a left-hander and that is always worth something. She covers the court well In rself. and she has flashes of brilliant placing. Iler vol leyiug from die net is well to the sidelines. Miss Brewster. Miss A. Brewster is essentially a gen eral. She places her shots beautifully cleverly varying the length and pace. She works skilfully for position, only going to the net when the opponent has

been worked off the court. Her fatal blunder against Miss East was in changing a winning game and in try ing to force the pace. There is no midcourt hitting about her game. She plays carefully to the side-lines to give the opponent the maximum amount of running. Mrs. Elias.

Mrs. Elias is fast overcoming a tendency to hit balls down towards the bottom of the net, and is altogether showing better timing in making her strokes. She is a base liner whose shots keep very low and skid on striking the ground. Her chief weaknesses are overhead, and on her backhand, the latter being mainly a poke at the ball. She should cultivate the habit of swinging for the shot. Her service, which also keeps low, is very reliable.

SENIOR GRADE INTER-CLUB MATCHES A si art was made on Saturday on tne Association Grounds at Miramar with the senior grade -inter-club matches. Very little attention was paid by the captains of some of the teams in filling in correctly the score sheets kept for record purposes. In most cases the number of sets played and the total games were put in, but not the actual scores of the sets themselves. As only to be expected there was a great disparity in the standard of players in the same team. Some of those piaying were well below senior standard. Miramar Grounds v. Wellington. J. McGill’s placing and steadiness were far too much for B. (J’Brien, who usually shines in the two departments in which McGill ou Saturday outshone him. There is a certain even temperedness about McGill's playing that can be very disconcerting, and he has the art of playing his shots without undue haste. He places well, preserves a good length, and against a net player, lobs very well. He has not so much power in his shots as certainty. He is a player who compels most people to force the issue and thus mistakes occur.

W. J. Hay, a lefthander, who strives for the net, did well to boat the steady, painstaking Purvis. Hay by his energy can be very disconcerting, ami he has occasions when ho plays first flight tennis. Bo keeps going at top from first to last.

C. Watts has gone back in his play, and was thus beaten by the remarkable steady, and very determined G. Dawson, who keeps putting the ball back with good length, and himself maintains a good court position. Mrs. Campbell played a good driving game against Miss Gardner concentrating mainly to the backhand ci’rner, and going to the net to finish the rally, provided there was any reply. Miss Gardner was forced almost throughout on the defensive.

Mrs. Murphy and Miss McKenzie are not senior players any more than Mrs. Brown and Miss Bain are, but I cannot help but place on record their iemarkable improvement, since last season, Mrs. Murphy especially. The former is playing very steadily and very coolly, and by her words of encouragement and advice to Miss McKenzie, she makes of the pair a steady combination. She does not get flurried, but plays steadily and with placement. In her doubles match she made scarcely a mistake. She kept a watchful eye on Miss McKenzie, so that the nnir functioned as a doubles team ought fo in point of combination. She made some good interception at the net. Miss McKenzie played some forceful backhand shots and together they outplayed Mrs. Brown and Miss Bain. Mrs. Murphy many times caught Miss Bain in the forehand corner with good erosscourt drives. Mrs. Pcnlinglon’s long sliding shots and her net nlay presented too many difficulties fo Miss Shepherd. Nor did Mrs. Renlington and Mrs. Campbell in the doubles have very much opposition. Victoria University v. Thorndon.

C. E. Malfroy completely overwhelmed H. Paul who found Malfroy’s placing much too clever. Paul was given very little opportunity to play his severe forehand drive from a position that suited him. Malfroy kept him always moving, and came to the net to finish off whenever he had worked Paul out of position. G. N. T. Goldie and Dr. A. Park are both hitters, but in this case the latter was the more accurate one. Park, too, made some fine shots from the net.

Hay moves very quickly about the court, but he met an experienced campaigner in A. E. Saudrall, who is quick to seize the opening and does not hesitate to play for the winner. Hay made fine recovering shots only to find himself further out of position with Sandrall at the net to finish cff. C. G. Scott and H. Burns played an interesting game. It is probably useless to suggest to the Wellington selectors that they could do much worse than give Burns a chan?e in trial games. He is a player who. with encouragement. would develop greatly, for he has a fine strength of stroke and a good temperament. It was fine Io watch the many times he quite outplaced Scott, whose game I have dealt with previously.

Brougham Hill v. Newtown. R. H. Douovau got as severe a trouncing from A. 1,. Fiance as he is ever likely to get from anyone else. He was made to seem merely a novice. France played with a strong determination (o make short work of his opponent, and therefore went after shots bo might otherwise have fell disposed to let go by, Donovan was never in the hunt, and he was outclassed in all departments. Wonderful to relate, France unleashed a drive which did capital execution. Donovan seemed to be hopelessly at sea ill what France made look like a forty-acre paddock. Nor did D. G. France show much mercy to W. I’, llollings, ami many of llollings's points were won as the result of France netting an extra special severe drive. llollings made some line placements, but usually France sped across the court and hit. them hard down the line. France also did great execution from the net. llollings fought pluckily bul hopelessly.

Boilings and Douoian were unlucky not to win I heir doubles against Ihe France brothers. They would have done sc in straight sets had not llollings, through tiredness, fallen completely away at a critical stage, and lost six points in a row. He could give Donovan no support at that stage at all. Fiance brothers had match point against them in the .second set twice, (inly Rollings' mistakes and their tine lobbing pulled I hem through. T. R. Williams outplaced T. Ward, who was made Io do all the running about, and consequently fell into nunier ous errors.

Clarke iihiycrt badly against S. Moore He seemed unable to do anything right, while Moore played with the greatest ‘on(*deuee and accuracy.

After 2 all in 'he first set Miss Trnci won the next ten games agains' Miss East, to win the match 6—2. fi—fl Miss East sought only to got H>o ball back and was sent on hopeless chases all over the court. At no e'are after the firs' four games did she oven ivo Miss Tine-' •i game. She settled into her usual -tone wallimr Incties. 'mt Miss Trace ■orofiillv nliiccd the lv>ll fc, the corners. and took the not to finish off the

i-ofiiri'. if there was one. Verv <.ftm'’ ''isc Fast could not reach to the ball Tbr. strain of so much eu’ining also mad'

Miss Brodi 1 übfod well acninst Mr.. Adams Rotter than norhnns she her coir ronlisos. 81m nlavod with defer ruination and got some fin” recoveries esnocv'Uv on 'ho bac'-hand. Mrs. Adams plaved snundlv and hard cetling the ’sidelines with beautiful drives. As only

natural in one who goes right for the line, she put some balls out. Miss Brady played in a manner of which her club may well be pro id. In the ladies’ doubles, Mrs. Adams and Miss Tracy against Miss East and Miss Brady, tiie outstanding feature was the magnificent driving of Mrs. Adams. Mrs. Marshall played a fine game, but she found Miss North much too strong and steady. Mrs. Marshall frequently made beautiful backhand returns of Miss Norf li’s most dangerous forehand cut drives. Miss North worked often to the net and volleyed to the opposite line. Miss Marshall realising the futility of chasing. Mrs. Burn played a fine game against Miss Williams' rocklike steadiness. NEW ZEALAND’S DAVIS CUP TEAM New Zealand has entered for the Davis Cup at the last minute, and for the second time New Zealand’s entry in the European zone coincides with the visit tn England and Europe of Mr. J. C. Peacock, who won the New Zealand championship in 1901 and again in 1910. Whereas the New Zealand team for its first entry was J. C. Peacock, F. M. B. Fisher, and Dr. Allison, this year it will probably be J. C. Peacock, F. M. B. Fisher, E. D. Andrews, and R. R. T. Young. Whatever claims to inclusion E. D. Andrews might have, not one of the other three would have even the remotest chance of qualifying in any properly conducted eliminating competition. Indeed, in any valid contest to get representatives for a New Zealand team they would not be selected to even participate in the trials. And yet this is the team which European countries are asked to regard as being representative of New Zealand. Surely if is doing less than justice to New Zealand and (o our best plavers that an opportunity should be given European countries to think of New Zealand in the terms I have suggested. The Davis Cup contest is primarily an international contest. Representa’tion should be by merit, so that one country may know that if

is meeting the best players of the other country in any given round. The knowledge that a country will select only the best acts as an inducement to spur on the best players in that country. If for financial reasons a country caii not get its best loam to tour, then it had better refrain front entering until such time as circumstances will permit of the best team being got together. To enter a team merelv because there are four mon already near the scene of play is •arcicnl. unless those ’• j>re. as a team, quite as much as individuals, fnl'y representative of the country they have 1 eon selected to n’av ‘"r. To sav that their presence near the scene relievos rhe Nw Zealand Association of any financial outlay is merely an exou'e end an arology. If lowers New Zealand tennis prestige in the eves of Europe and of the world. FOOTFAULTING In connection with the footfaulting of the Frenchmen, Borotra, Brugnon, and Boussus, in the Australian championships, the following extract from “The Field," forwarded to me by a valued correspondent, is of considerable interest. The extract is taken from the issue of April 28. 1927. "The official 'Umpires’ Handbook’ recently issued by the New South Wales Umpires’ Association, would seem to need revision in future issues,” runs the extract. "It is true that some business houses still spell racket as ‘racquet’; we had hoped that ho modern British governing body would fall into this error. But this perhaps is a pardonable lapse, for which Dr. McElhone can claim a precedent. The manual, however, contains several illustrations of what the player may not do in serving. The first of these is of a man serving with his right foot od the ground and his left foot advanced in the air. The printed inscription is, 'Don’t take a step to deliver the service, as it is a footfault.’ The service, as illustrated, is, of course, perfectlj fair. A player cannot 'walk or run’ with one foot firmly planted on the ground. Although he may develop a walk after hitting the ball he has not accomplished that exercise until the forward foot has been grounded and the other foot lifted. If a drill sergeant order a man to take one step forward he would not consider it a step if one foot is advanced and the other left where it was; the second foot, of course. Ims to be brought to the side of the first.” I will leave further comments on this important aspect of tennis to a future occasion.