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Show I My Greatest Thrill Jport I X An Interview With s I WILLIAM T. TILDEN I ' World' Foremost Tennis Piaye-- $ ttwY GREATEST thrill In sport," J-'l answered the world's greatest f '; tennis player without with-out hesitation, "was undoubtedly In the final match at Forest Hills In 1020, the ti r s t year I won the na-1 na-1 1 o n a I championship. champion-ship. "In order to win the coveted crown I had to defeat my friendly enemy, William Johnston, of California, who was then national Bill Tllden. champion and who had beaten me In three sets the year before. "More than 13,000 tense spectators Jammed the stands to watch the old favorite and the new contender battle in the cente) Overhead an airplane, air-plane, taklfographs of the event, drumlssantly, the drone of the motf almost the only sound In thid inclosure. "The scorat set all, with me leading 2-1 hird set. "Suddenliie middle of the game, just jsed my racquet to serve, I loornd there, directly over our his the plane, its engine en-gine gone s dead, gliding craz-Ily craz-Ily to eartlished not 100 yards behind the but so intense was the intercs match itself that less than by actual count left to vieeck. "I saw tcss gestures of the pilot and ipher as the plane glided pasljcl heard the sickening, sicken-ing, splintrash. But no one seemed to "There a me, were the same breathless, nt, packed masses of humanity, awaiting the outcome of the struggle for the national tennis crown. I had to go on as if nothing had happened, as though my hand and heart had not been unsteadied in the least. "With a great effort I managed to continue play and to pull out the set, making the score 2-1 in my favor. "Then came the intermission. Back in the dressing room several kind friends poured out the gory details of the accident. Both pilot and photographer photog-rapher had been killed and the machine ma-chine was a mass of splinters and twisted metal. They omitted nothing, in their full and lurid descriptions. "I tried not to let all this unnerve me and upset my game, for Johnston Is not the sort of opponent ever to let down or show a weakness for a break. But the match seemed to have a jinx, for in the middle of the fourth set, when I was agaiu beginning to lead, the skies opened and it began to pour. "It was only a short shower, but Johnston, refreshed, came back and won the fourth set, squaring the sets at two all and running out the match to five sets. Wearily and warily we battled for the last set, which I finally final-ly won, and with it my first national title. "But not even the winning of the crown itself afforded the breathless thrill of that third set, when, racquet poised to serve, I heard the airplane stop dead directly above me, saw the certain doom of the two men, and knew that, whatever happened, I must go on with the battle against one of the world's best tennis players and pluckiest fighters. "Yes, that moment, without question, ques-tion, was my biggest thrill." (CQ by Public Ledger Company.) |