PREVIEW OF THE ITF WORLD SUPER-SENIORS
TEAMS CHAMPIONSHIPS
to be played in Christchurch, New Zealand
commencing Monday 26 November, 2007.
A total of 95 Teams will compete in New Zealand
in the World Teams event, which is comprised of nine age groups.
The Cup with the highest number of teams is the Von Cramm (M60s) –
18 teams. Next is the Britannia Cup (M65s) with 14, followed by
the Kitty Godfree (W65s) with 12. Australia has a team in all
Cups.
Most of our players are heading off on Friday
Nov 23rd and play will start on Monday, November 26th.
Why not make ITF Seniors one of your bookmarks (add it to your
‘favourites’), and keep track of their progress? It should be
exciting competition. When you get on to the page of your choice,
select it as a bookmark or favourite and you will be able to
access it rapidly whenever you wish.
A beautiful Rosewater Dish is the prize for the
winning Queens’ Cup (W75s) team, which was presented
to the ITF in 2002. USA has had a strangle-hold on it, winning 4
times. Great Britain soundly defeated NZ 3-0 in the Final in ’06,
winning the #2 Singles 6-0 6-0, #1 Singles 7-6 6-0 and the Doubles
6-1 3-6 7-6. The fancied US team was relegated to #4 position by
Canada, when Rosemarie Asch came back from 2-6 down to win 6-4
7-6. She then partnered Joyce Jones (who had lost her Singles) to
win the Doubles decider, 7-5 6-3. Seven teams this year, instead
of four, should create some interesting matches, and the grass
should suit our girls! Elsie Crowe, Barbara Godfrey, Claire Murrie
and Beth Lown have played together before, so here’s hoping they
can "turn the tables" on some of the so-called "stars" – from USA,
Canada and Great Britain.
The Althea Gibson Cup
(W70s), was initiated in 1998, and contested in Florida
for the first time. In 2006, USA beat France 3-0 in the Final,
with Australia defeating Canada 2-1 to come in 5th. USA
is there again, but it’s on grass, so who knows how they will go?
Our team led by Margaret Robinson, with Nola Collins, Joyce Rogers
and Helen Ferris could go "all the way."
Presented in 1994, the Kitty Godfree
(W65s) was won in 2006 by USA, led by Suella Steel and
Charlene Hillebrand, who defeated France 2-1. Australia came 9th,
with a win over Canada 3-0. The hard court surface could cause an
upset or two, and our team of Linda Pengelly, Helen Muir, Judy
Hancy and Jill Taylor has been preparing well. They will be in
Ashburton, where our 65 Men’s team is playing. They may be able to
give one another the support they need!
Our girls in the Alice Marble Cup (W60s),
fared well in ‘06, when they were victorious over Great Britain,
2-1, to take the Bronze medal. Bev Eddington lost at #2 against
Susan Hill, with Carol Campling #1 winning over her World Doubles
partner, Frances MacLennan, 6-1 6-4. The Doubles went to Australia
with Carol and Heather (Barwick), victorious for a 6-4 6-2 win,
sealing 3rd place. The winners were Germany over France
2-1. The German team will be the one to beat with Heidi Orth and
Sylvia Bauwens leading the fray, but don’t discount the American
team headed by Brenda Carter. The French are without the services
of Gail (Sheriff) Benedetti, Carol’s sister. Carol and Heather are
joined by Marilyn Davis and Lou Griffith, so here’s hoping for a
Finals berth. Take it away, girls!
Gardnar Mulloy donated one of his
trophies for the winners of the M80s, back in 1996.
Austria won its first 80s event last year, by cleaning up USA in
the Final. Jirkovsky went down in the #2 Singles, but Laci
Legenstein won the #1, taking it to a Doubles "decider" – this
went to Austria with Legenstein and Jirkovsky beating Franco and
Nichols to seal victory. Australia (seeded #3) came in 5th.
Doug Corbett, Ward Hillier, Dick Wilson and Nev Halligan are
capable players, so let’s hope the grass suits them better than it
suits the other teams! Drop shots will abound, no doubt.
In 2006, the Bitsy Grant Cup (M75s),
first contested in 1994, was won by Canada, defeating USA in
the Final. Champion Lorne Main won his #1 Singles 6-2 6-2 and Ken
Sinclair took out his opponent, 6-4 6-2. The USA salvaged some
pride and prevented a clean sweep by winning the Doubles. France
beat Sweden for third place and Australia got the better of
Switzerland to come 7th. Our team, led by Max Byrne,
with Adrian Alle, Ron deCosta and John McCarthy will need to play
well, and France is not contesting this year, so we can jump right
in, with a bit of luck!
The Jack Crawford (M70s), a
special Australian favourite, donated in 1983, went to the USA
team, who achieved a fantastic record of 17 wins, defeating
Australia in 2006. While Ray Woodforde lost to Herman Ahlers ‘one
and three’, Peter Froelich swept Gordon Davis off his feet 6-1
6-2. Then Froelich and Hocking succumbed to Duesler and Nelson in
the Doubles. These four Americans will feature again in 2007, so
it will be VERY interesting to see if they can "do it again"! They
will have to contend with Ian King and Tony Harkin assisting
Froelich and Woodforde this time!
One of the "oldest" Cups, dating back to 1979,
is the Britannia Cup ( M65s), donated by Great
Britain, of course, which will not have last year’s Champions in
the mix. Austria had its second consecutive win in ’06, against
Germany, but will be missing this year. Australia will be
represented by Bob Howes, Bruce Burns, Murray French and Tom
Downie, all seasoned campaigners, so it will be interesting to see
if they can reach the Final. Germany is represented by much the
same team as the one which reached the ’06 Final, so it will be
"touch and go." The USA team will be in there fighting as well. Then there’s the Von Cramm Cup, (M60s),
named after Baron Gottfried Von Cramm, from
the "Fred Perry" era, who had won the French (2x) and German
Singles (6x), only to be bundled out in the Wimbledon Final on 3
occasions by the great Mr Perry himself. That was in ’35, ’36 and
’37. Last year saw the USA Champs Hugh Thomson and Michael
Beautyman combine with Hoeveler and Johnson to defeat the Swiss
combination in the Final 2-1. This year Brian Cheney and Jimmy
Parker will be there with Hugh and Michael. On hardcourt, it could
be anyone’s game! Australians Terry Smith, Alan Walsh, Phil Higgs
and Terry McLellan will give them a "run for their money". Great
Britain’s Bland and Tutt are right there, too. So the competition
is HOT! With 18 teams, the result is not easy to predict.
One thing’s for sure, with a team in every Cup, we are there with
a chance, so here’s hoping we can bring home a Cup or two, this
time around. As Kevin Winter would have said: "Go Aussies, Go!"
Maybe he’ll have some influence from "up there"! Good Luck
Australia, play hard, and as someone said: "don’t come off till
you’ve won that last point."
Robyn Castle
Publicity Officer
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