THE DAVIS CUP.
MATCH AGAIN POSTPONED. POOR PROSPECTS FOR TO-DAY By Telegraph.—FreM Assoetattou. Auckland, Last Night. Owing to. drizzling rain this morning the Dnviß Cup matches were again postponed till Thursday. The weather to-night looks anything but favorable for the contest to-morrow. After a brief period of fine •weather rain began again about four o'clock and has continued off and on ever since. At eight o'clock the eky was overcast, with a. liglit drizzle.
Mr. T. H. Hicks, secretary of the Australasian Lawn Tennis Association, arrived by the Port Nicholson this afternoon. Mr. Hicks had booked his passage by the Maheno in the first instance. He stated he wae very pleased with the arrangements made here for the Dayii Cup contest. About one hundred Australians who were to come over to see the contest had been forced to cancel their arrangement!. ' The New Zealand tennis champiorf* ships, which were to have begun on Sat-, urday, will start on Friday, play being taken in the morning only. On Saturday morning play only will also take place.
AMERICA'S CHANCES. FAVORED BY ENGLISH CRITIO. By Telegraph.—Press Asm—Copyright. ~ London, Dec. 27. The Times' tennis contributor, while favoring America's chances, points out that it was never fortunate in Australasia. If Tilden is all America claims him to be the team should win three out of the four singles, sufficient to secure the cup. The choice of Auckland may be regarded as a posthumous tribute to Wilding. Dio ■ substitution of Brookes in the singles ia a surprise, suggesting that Australasia thinks America can only be beaten by headwork. It therefore picked Brookes, the greatest tennis head who ever entered a court. The result may hinge on Patterson's recovery of his best form, which was not shown at Wimbledon, where Tilden's methods made the Australian's back-hand appear the worst ever seen on the central court. He will have to devise method* to protect his back-hand to-reverse the . result.
Johnston's English form suggests that Patterson and perhaps O'Hara Wood may beat him.—Times.
POINTS ABOUT THE PLAYERS. SOME PERSONAL NOTES. ■ Referring to the four competitors in the big games, the Auckland Herajd says-.—Brookes, the Australasian captain, has been a commanding figure in world tennte for nearly fifteen years. No player in the world has won so many championships, ranging from club championships to the world's title, which he held wlien he was -twenty years of' age. He was associated with Anthony Wilding in the first win by Australasia of the Davis Cup in 1907; An eminent critic says of him:—ln the finesse of the game he is in a class by himself. His ground strokes are accurate to a degree, but he uses them more as a method of descending on the net. Once there the.famous volleying stroke and his uncanny sense of anticipation are as great as ever. His half volley is dead-, ly in its directness and certainty. Brakes, perhaps, makes fewer mistakes than any man playing tennis to-day. Even now, at 43 years of age, he ia an opopnent who must always be feared by even the greatest of the world's younger players, Brookes is a lefthander.
Gerald Paterson is 24 years of age. A protege of Brookes, his rise to fame ha 3 been meteoric. He won the world's title in 1919, but lost it this year to W : iT. TiUcn, of America. He is a, born match player, who is not infrequently beaten by steadier performers in practice games, but rises to surprising brilliancy in matches. His overhead volleying is wonderfully certain always, his smashing terrific, and his service harder than that of any other presentday player. His "mystery" stroke is an unorthodox backhand that he plays to high 'rising balls, which is fundamentally all wrong, but is at times,wonderfully effective.
O'Hara Wood is under 30 years of age, and plays versatile and brilliant allround tennis,, without a notieeaMe weakness anywhere. He has not the hitting power of Patterson, but his speed of foot and precision of shot enabled him to beat that player lit the Allied Armies' competition at Paris in 1919, and to fully extend him in the Victorian Singles Championship this year.
W. T. Tilden, the present world's 1 champion, is a master of every stroke* He is a great hitter on either hand, high or low, and a fine lobber, though inclined to be caught in error against an opponent who lobs well against him. His service is not quite so severe, aa that of Patterson, but ho has. s low straight shot that has been christened his "bullet service," which is a winner, when it comes off. He makes some amazing recoveries.
W. _M. Johnston was considered ia America to be an unapproachable all' round player till Tilden came on the* scene this year. A little man he times his strokes so exquisitely that they all have grea.t speed, and his forehand drive from the back of the court is faster than that of any of the other players. He does not cut so much as Tilden, but, like his fellow-countryman, he fa wonderfully accurate in his driving on either hand. He has not the Bevere service of Tilden.
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Taranaki Daily News, 30 December 1920, Page 5
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860THE DAVIS CUP. Taranaki Daily News, 30 December 1920, Page 5
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