TENNIS
Amherst v The Green: honours on both sides
The end of March brings closure to winter doubles competitions across Sussex – an appropriate time to take stock.
In Division 2 of the Tennis Sussex ladies league, the Amherst team found the going tough in away matches earlier in the season but ended with two excellent home victories, including a 4-0 whitewash of the Green on the final Sunday. Top pair Nikki Crowhurst and Jane Garrett and second strings Pearl Hare and Karen Cunnington each won their two matches in straight sets. The Green foursome fought gamely but, in the absence of perennial top-ranker Amanda Ruck who is recovering from a broken leg, were outclassed and have been relegated to Division 3 for next winter.
In the equivalent men’s doubles Amherst found the quality of Division 4 opponents difficult to match, though Quentin Soucek emerged with a creditable 50% record in his six rubbers. The Green, playing a division higher, were more successful, Alex Williams winning more ties than any other player in the division, and finding an excellent partner in Chris Grief
Both clubs contest mixed doubles in the Wealden League, which attracts competing teams from Kent as well as East Sussex. Amherst and The Green regularly challenge for the Division 1 title in this format, but had to settle neck-and-neck for third and fourth places over the 12-month season which also ended in March, pipped by Cross-in-Hand.
The new Sussex tennis year started on 1 April in a flurry of sleet and wind more appropriate to December, which confined the keenest local players to respective clubhouses. But not for long – the ladies of Amherst and The Green have been drawn to play against each other again in the opening contest of the equivalent summer doubles this coming Sunday.
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