The Baltic Exchange Tennis Society held the annual Fehr Cup on Friday 28th July at Surbiton Racket and Fitness Club in South London.

Click here to see the full album of photos from this year's Fehr Cup.

--

The teams gathered under gloomy grey skies but with optimism that we would get some play. We had a smaller entry compared to when we first set the date but the group of 10 pairs worked perfectly.

The teams were MOL, The Baltic Exchange, Howe Robinson, Braemar, West of England P&I Club, Cory Brothers, Thurlestone and Bright Cook, as well as a mixed pairing of Bancosta and the Baltic.

The first rounds were round robin matches played in two separate groups. Matches were of varying standards interrupted by a short shower but play continued enthusiastically.

During and after a slap-up afternoon tea the top two teams from each group played the final and the runners up played for third and fourth place on Surbiton’s show courts. A side affair was another playoff for glory between the two pairs from Howe Robinson who were both third in their respective pools.

The final between MOL and Cory Brothers (Braemar) and the third/fourth playoff between Braemar and Thurlestone were both of a high standard noticed by members of the Club who watched as well.

In the final, Cory Brothers took the first set 6-4 after a single break of serve. The second set was even closer with neither side being able to get ahead but MOL managed to seize a few key points and win 7-4 in the tiebreak. MOL then got an early lead in the championship tiebreak, but Cory Brothers fought back to even the score. MOL finally forced some errors from Cory Bothers and won the final tiebreak 10-7. 

The third and fourth playoff was tightly contested between Thurlestone and Braemar. Thurlestone ran away with the first set 6-1, however Braemar came out fighting in the second set and held a set point to level the match. Thurlestone managed to squeeze through the set and took the match in straight sets 6-1 7-6. 

Costas Maramenides reprieved his annual role of collecting the results and chair umpire for the final, both of which were accomplished with his usual efficiency and good humour.

Unfortunately, the Fehr family were unable to attend this rearranged day but sent a message that was read by Catharine. In their absence, the long-time name of Baltic Tennis, Perry Perera, presented the cup and prizes to the winners.

We want to thank the Fehr family for their continued support for this event, which was first played in 1935 and they expect to be present next year.

Thank you to all who entered and gave support especially when we had to rearrange due to the rain cancellation. A special thanks goes to the Baltic Exchange for their extra help.

We would also like to remind everyone that the Baltic has now officially launched the “Racket Sports Club” which is being run by Matthew Cannon (MOL). The aim of the club is to try and run a few more tennis, padel and table tennis events throughout the year so if this is something you are interested in, please contact him for more details.

The next event will hopefully be a Padel tournament in Stratford in September – keep an eye out for the details!

 

Fehr Family Message


A message on behalf of the Fehr Family, from Carrie Scott, Richard Fehr's daughter - for all those who knew him.

We hope very much that you have enjoyed a rain-free Fehr Cup Tennis Tournament today. My father would be so pleased that this annual gathering continues.

We are really sorry this is a written message. My mother, Sally, and I so enjoyed being here in 2022 on behalf of the family. It was our first visit, and we were very disappointed this year's Tournament was rained off on 14th July. We had gathered together quite a number of the family, most of whom were looking forward to their first time at the Tournament. We shall try to organise something similar in 2024.

On that very wet Friday two weeks ago, 10 of us had dinner in Surbiton in honour of the Cup, its history, and all of you who have been playing. Unfortunately, none of us could manage today's date but we send you our very best wishes but we hope to see you next summer.

In the meantime, many congratulations to today's winner(s). I'm sure there has been some exciting tennis, as there certainly was last year. Thank you for giving up your time to play: it means a lot to us and we hope you will be here next year. In the meantime, enjoy looking after the Cup, whoever is its custodian!

Finally, our thanks to Catharine and Matt for organising the pairings, to Costas for keeping the scores, and to everyone else involved in making today run smoothly. A very special 'thank you' must go to Catharine, who has twice had the worry of organising this year's Tournament. She has been patient and dogged in her determination that it should happen, and I'm sure she'll be very relieved now that the 2023 Fehr Cup Tennis Tournament is over and she can relax.

Very best wishes to you all, from the whole Fehr family.