The Star: March 23, 2023

Tennis final rematch
a brotherly affair
• By Diane Keenan
ELMWOOD WILL play
Cashmere in the final of premier
men’s tennis interclub on Saturday
in a repeat of last year’s final.
No clear favourite stands out
with both teams equally capable of
winning the season-decider, which
will be played at the Elmwood
courts at 1pm.
It will be a family affair for both
teams. Cashmere have the three
Meredith brothers, Matt, Tim and
James, while defending champions
Elmwood have the Darling
brothers, Elliot and Lawrence, and
the Batt brothers, Tom and Eddie.
Both teams enjoyed convincing
wins in the semi-finals. Elmwood
did not drop a game in their clash
with Bishopdale, while Cashmere
only lost one doubles rubber
against Burnside Park with Liam
Barrett and Harry Weeds going
down in a tight three-set match
to Burnside Park’s Jamie Poole
and Rene Dumont. As expected,
the match of the semi-final was
the singles between top players
James Meredith and Remi Feneon.
Meredith won 6-2 6-4 and is likely
to play in the top slot for the final,
supported by his brothers, Weeds,
Barrett and Lucas Evans.
Said Cashmere team captain
Tim Meredith: “This season we’ve
included Liam and Lucas in the
team, who are both at Christ’s
College and coached by Matt. They
have bought into our environment
and play a really high
standard of tennis.
Having them in
the team has taken
the pressure off our
older players. “This
final is special for
us. It is Cashmere’s
centenary and that
Tim
Meredith
is an extra incentive for us to win.
Everyone is quite motivated.”
Elmwood is expected to field
the same players as the semi-final.
The Batt and Darling brothers
will play the singles and possibly
Mid-Canterbury coach Jack Tiller,
bringing in James Spence in the
doubles.
Elmwood general manager
Ashley Forbes has fond memories
of last year’s final when a crowd of
100 lined the courts at Elmwood.
“It was a great day of tennis. All
the matches were keenly fought as
I predict they will be this Saturday.
We think the crowd could be even
bigger on Saturday. They are all
fierce competitors on-court, but
great mates off court,” he said.
Members of both teams played
with or against each other
through the junior ranks and into
secondary school. The Meredith
brothers are Christchurch Boys’
High old boys and the Darlings
and Batts went to St Andrew’s
College.
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
• By Jaime Cunningham
BURNSIDE WEST will be
looking to end their season as
two-day club cricket champions
on Saturday.
Going into the final day, the
side are looking to make up for
their disappointing loss to Old
Boys’ Collegians in the men’s
one-day final last month by
beating Lancaster Park at home
to claim the two-day title.
Burnside West lead by 71 on
67/4 in their second innings
with Scott Janett and Jackson
Latham at the crease. They
were bowled out for 99 runs in
their first innings on Saturday.
Lancaster Park also struggled
with the bat and were bowled
out for 95.
Burnside West captain Matt
Hay was caught on 13 in the
second innings, so young guns
Nick Gibb and Tim Seeto are set
to get an opportunity to make
some runs for Burnside West
this weekend.
Although Burnside West have
a 10-point lead in the two-day
points table, St Albans have a
chance to win the competition
if they can beat Heathcote
outright and Burnside West
Thursday March 23 2023 The Star
SPORT 31
Another title shot
for Burnside-West
CHALLENGE: Burnside West captain Matt Hay lost his
wicket on Saturday.
PHOTO: ELIZABETH INGLIS PHOTOGRAPHY
lose or draw on Saturday. In the
women’s competition, one-day
competition champions Lancaster
Park and OBC forfeited their
last match of the season due to
players travelling with the Canterbury
A side. Lancaster Park
won their seventh 50-over title
in eight years over the weekend.
They also currently sit at the top
of the Four20 Fizz table alongside
Sydenham who they played
in the 50-over final.
Due to the forfeit, Sydenham
will be looking for a second
format win on Saturday
when they play North West.
Sydenham won the women’s
T20 final last month, while
North West have won under
half of their matches in all three
formats this season.
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