Omaha daily bee., 1911-07-02
ENGLISH ARE NUTS AT TENNIS
Britishers stll Wondering Why
French Lads Win from Them.
INFLUENCED BY TRADITIONS
English sports Are BeEtnninE TO
Realize that They Have Been left
Behind In the Great inter-
national sport.


NEW YORK, July I-since Andre Co
bert. the brilliant young Frenchman, won
the covered court singles championship OF
England there has been a lot of gossip
going the rounds abroad that It is note
worthy that neither the outdoor nor tn
door national titles are held by English
men. Those who are keen on the situation
have Il that there is more opportunity of
developing players on the continent. At any
rate 1t took Coolest but five years to "ar-
rive" at the top notch. In 1905 he was as a
novice and on liberal mark in the handi-
caps. and he is only q years Of age. A
still more striking instance Of rapid ad-
vancement Is that of w. LaurentE, who
defeated Anthony F. wildlng. the world $
champion. In the open championship Of
France In the French national cham
pionshfp Coolest beat Laurentz three sets
to one, and Is stiil q moot point which is
the better player In dealing with the
problem of what England ought to do
IL. 8. scrivener says. France at the
present time can boast OF two young play
ers whose united ages amount TO &c. and a
bit who can hold their own anywhere.
When shall we look upon their like in Eng
land?
There Is. OF course one very good rea-
son why budding lawn tennis players bios
som earlier on the continent than in Eng
land. In England we have our recognized
public school games in which lawn tennis
is not included; on the continent lawn
tennis is the recognized game for the
young and has practically no rival games
to compete against. While our boys are
working away industriously at cricket and
foot ball the young Frenchman or young
German is devoting himself just as earn
estly to the cult of the master strokes of
lawn tennis. The natural result is that on
the continent finished players are turned
out while their contemporaries on the other
side Of the channel are only playing pat
ball now and again when there is nothing
else to do.
This is the ostensible reason why the
production OF first class lawn tennis play
ers in England is a slow process But it
is not the only or the chief one If II
were, l would be willing to accept 1t as
insurmountable, for am not of those who
advocate the introduction of lawn tennis
into our schools as a rival Of cricket.
think that cricket is an infinitely better
game for some boys, probably for most
boys, than lawn tennis. II the two games
were really and irretrievably antagonlstic
should give my vote for cricket, for rea-
sons which l need not elaborate. But
they are not And the real reason why we
have Jagged behind at lawn tennis while
other nations have been advancing is that,
having begun to play lawn tennis on grass
some forty years ago. we have steadily
persisted in regarding It mainly as a sum-
M ma MI Co oh
whereas the other nations have tumbled
to the fact that 1t is a game for all the
year round and can be played TAR more
scientifically and far better on hard courts,
whether under cover or In the open, and
whether in winter or In summer, than on
grass. unless the grass happens to be of
the billiard table like smoothness and
hardness which one meets with In about
one court In every twenty or thirty-and
then only when the weather happens to
be fine
"One OF the curses OF lawn tennis is it's
designation. which we have to employ in
order TO distinguish It from its ancient and
venerable prototype. On the continent
they talk gaily about tennis unfettered by
tradition. and 1 dare swear that many of
their best players. though they nearly all
DPNo@h
a vague idea of what the word lawn means
Il am absolutely convinced that the
progress OF our own rising players is ham
pered by the fact that they have to adapt
their game to the exigencies of the more
or less untrue surface met with on the
average lawn. whereas the fine. free style
of the young continental players such as
Colbert and Laurentz of France and Rahe
and the brothers Kleinschroth OF Germany,
has been acquired by continual practice on
wood, gravel. rubble or some similarly
hard and true surface. There are plenty of
boys in England who could. develop the
same skill, without detriment to their
cricket. IL the proper courts were avail
able and If their early experiences of lawn
tennis were not confined to an occasional
'knock-up during the summer vacation on
some grass court or other. either on private
grounds or at local club where it was
odds on that the ball would not bound
within foot of where 1t ought to. Every
boy, moreover, does not go to a public
school, nor does every boy play cricket
No. We have got the raw material in
plenty for the production of the finished
article. 1t Is the plan whSh we laid down
for the manufacture OF It which Is faulty
and insufficient.
1T is automatic that the better the court
the better the tennis, or to put II in an
other way. It Is impossible TO learn to play
fast class tennis on second-class court.
The idea that a man who has learned to
play on a bad court will play ell the better
when he comes to play on a good one, is
all wrong. The learner on a bad court, not
knowing until the last instant what the ball
Is going 10 do, dare not In the language
OF golf take full swing. All he can do
Is to poke and push at it. and when he
happens on a good court he continues to
poke and push, because that is the only
thing he has learned TO do. The trueness
OF the court does not help him the least,
and won't help him until by continually
practicing on IL he begins to trust the bali
to behave Is he expects 1t TO behave and
to hit 1t. Then and then only does he
stand the chance OF becoming a player
All our best players are men who have
learned the game and practice it on good
courts-never. IL they can help It. on in
ferior ones.
Ono OF the canons of English lawn
tennis faith Is: There is nothing to come
up to perfect grass court, Granted. But
how often do you find a grass court that
Is perfect OF even good2 The average grass