The Duchess of Kent presents trophies to Australians Lew Hoad (left) and Ken Rosewall,after their Men’s doubles victory at Wimbledon,July 8,1956.SMH Archives
Australia yesterday consolidated its position as the world’s top tennis nation. Lew Hoad followed up his magnificent singles title win of the previous day by partnering the runner-up,Ken Rosewall,in a victorious men’s doubles final.
Hoad and Rosewall won,7-5,6-2,6-1,from the Italian pair,Nicola Pietrangeli and Orlando Sirola. They outclassed the Italians in all departments and right from the beginning there was little doubt the Australians would win.
Queenslanders Daphne Seeney and Fay Muller made a brave but hopeless effort to capture the women’s doubles title,but went under to Miss Angela Buxton (Britain) and Miss Althea Gibson (United States). The much more powerful Gibson-Buxton combination won,6-1,8-6.
Britain’s Angela Buxton (left) and America’s Althea Gibson defeated Australia’s Fay Muller and Daphne Seeney in the women’s doubles final at Wimbledon July 8,1956.SMH Archives
The men’s doubles did not produce the powerful tennis nor the stroke play expected. Hoad and Rosewall did not have to play their best tennis.
Early in the match the 6ft 7in Sirola served so well that it looked as if he might swing the balance of power the way of the Italians. But Pietrangeli’s service was weak and once the Australians had broken that they virtually had the game won. Hoad and Rosewall combined better than the Italians,who made many mistakes,particularly in leaving the centre of the court open.
The Italians’ direction was often at fault and Sirola hit the ball out of court several times when it seemed he would have little difficulty in smashing. Later in the match Sirola’s service became a little ragged,and once this happened the Italian pair were on the way out.
All four players seemed disinclined to rush the net and much of the play was on the baseline or between the baseline and the service court. Both Hoad and Rosewall returned well and several times they put back Sirola’s powerful service with almost as much power as he used in putting it down.
Miss Muller and Miss Seeney seemed quite out of touch early in their doubles match and their opponents had little trouble in taking the first set 6-1. The whole match revolved around service breaks. Miss Muller served five times in the match and lost her service four times.
Miss Seeney,usually the weaker server of the two,did not lose as many services as her partner,but she made many mistakes with her length and direction. The women’s singles final was probably the least entertaining for many years,with Britain’s Angela Buxton outclassed.
Her stalling tactics,whether deliberate or unconscious—sometimes twice in a game she would break off to walk across to the umpire’s stand and towel herself or wipe her racket handle—reduced Shirley Fry first to exasperation then to tears. Before she received her trophy from the Duchess of Kent the American girl had to twice wipe her eyes.