1996 Real Tennis World Championship

1996 Real Tennis World Championship
Date	25th-29th March 1996
Edition	61st
Location	Melbourne, Victoria
Venue	Royal Melbourne Tennis Club
Champions
Men's singles
Robert Fahey

The 1996 Real Tennis World Championship was the 61st edition of the real tennis World Championship. It was held at the Royal Melbourne Tennis Club in Victoria, Australia. Incumbent champion Robert Fahey defended his title against Wayne Davies seven sets to one in a repeat of the 1994 and 1995 challenges. Davies equalled Pierre Etchebaster's record of nine career World Championship challenges.

Qualification

As the defending champion, Robert Fahey automatically qualified to the World Championship Challenge. Fahey would make his third appearance at the World Championship, having previously won the 1994 and 1995 Challenges.

To qualify to challenge for the World Championship, players needed to win one of the four National Opens in the 1995 season. Fahey himself won the 1995 British Open. Three players qualified to challenge Fahey:

• Wayne Davies, 1995 US Open winner
• Mike Gooding, 1995 French Open winner
• Frank Filippelli, 1995 Australian Open winner

Davies was a former World Champion, having held the title on four occasions between 1987 and 1993. He lost the 1994 World Championship to Fahey in Hobart and New York. He unsuccessfully challenged the 1995 World Championship, also in Hobart, retiring with a back injury on the eve of the third day. At the time of the challenge, he held 15 Open titles, though in January 1995 lost the US Open to Julian Snow at the Racquet and Tennis Club, New York — his first loss at New York in over 15 years.

Gooding challenged for the World Championship for the first time, having won the French Open in 1995. Notably, he and Chris Bray defeated Davies and Lachlan Deuchar in the final of the 1994 British Open Doubles, the latter's first defeat in that tournament in over 10 years. The pair also won the 1995 Australian Open doubles.

Filipelli won his first and only career Open title at the 1995 Australian Open, defeating Bray in the final in straight sets. He also won the doubles at the 1995 British Open with Fahey.

1996 would be the first World Championship since 1985 that Lachlan Deuchar was not eligible to challenge.

Venue

As the defending champion Robert Fahey had the right to choose the time and place for the Challenge. Having elected to challenge in Hobart for the last two Championships, Fahey instead nominated the Royal Melbourne Tennis Club. It would be the third consecutive, and third total, Challenge held in Australia, and the first in Melbourne. Both eliminators would also be held in Melbourne, the home court of challenger Frank Filippelli.

Eliminators

The three qualified players played a series of Eliminators for the right to challenge Fahey across late February and early March 1995. All matches were held at the Royal Melbourne Tennis Club.

The first eliminator was held between Filippelli and Gooding in late February. The first day was unseasonably hot, which favoured the Australian Filippelli over the Scotsman Gooding. The first set was close, until Filippelli hit a hot streak, racing from 3-all to win the set 6/3. The second set went the way of Gooding after a long deuce battle in the second game. Filippelli started the third set strongly, holding a lead throughout despite a late Gooding comeback. Filippelli blitzed the final set of the day in the heat 6/1.

Gooding started well on the second day, winning the first two sets as Filippelli looked in disarray. However, he rebuilt his composure over the course of the next two sets to level the day at two sets all. Going into the final day, Filippelli had a 5–3 lead. The first two sets of the final day were shared one apiece, with Filippelli needing one more set to win. The first three games of the tenth set were long and gruelling, and afterwards Filippelli began to tire. Gooding went on the attack and won all three remaining sets to qualify for the final eliminator.

Gooding faced Davies in the second eliminator in early March. On the first day, the honours were evenly split, with Davies pushing Gooding to the corners and Gooding responding with attack at any opportunity. The first set of the second day proved crucial. With high temperatures again, neither player took much of an advantage, with Davies finishing with a grille after a 5-all deuce. In the next two sets, Gooding tried to slow down the play but could not find his targets, both comfortably falling to Davies. Gooding suffered a heavy fall from sweat on the floor in the final set of the second day, taking a short timeout. After the break, Gooding returned reinvigorated and retrevied brilliantly to take the set 6/4. Davies had a 5–2 lead going into the final day, and found the final two sets comfortably to secure a place in the Challenge against Fahey.

	First Round Eliminator																		Final Eliminator
																			1	Wayne Davies	6	4	6	3	6	6	6	4	6	6				7
		Mike Gooding	3	6	4	1	6	6	2	4	6	4	6	6	6	7				Mike Gooding	4	6	1	6	5	3	1	6	3	5				3
		Frank Filippelli	6	2	6	6	5	3	6	6	4	6	2	3	2	6

Match

The format for the Challenge was best of thirteen sets played over three days. Four sets were scheduled for the first two days, and up to five sets on the final day.

Day 1

Fahey started the match at a very high tempo, serving exclusively [[Real tennis#Service]|railroads]] and hitting with great power and accuracy at the targets. He was also exceptional in the air, both for his cut-volleys and his defensive volleys. Fahey raced through the first two sets, winning both 6/1. Davies fought back in both the second two sets of the day, but could not hold on as Fahey won a 4–0 lead.

Day 2

Davies changed tactics on the second day, switching from his slower railroad to a mixture of bobbles and boomerangs. It served him well, taking the first set of the day 6/5, before Fahey ran away with the rest of the match, winning the sixth set 6/1. Davies tried to resist in the seventh, but to no avail as Fahey's railroad proved too strong. Fahey ultimately won the match 7–1, negating the need for a third day of play.

Result

	World Championship Challenge
	1	Robert Fahey	6	6	6	6	5	6	6	6						7
	2	Wayne Davies	1	1	4	5	6	1	4	4						1