TENNIS / LTA boss calls for change

John Robbins, president of the Lawn Tennis Association, yesterday highlighted Britain's poor performances in international tournaments and called for a change of approach.

After being elected for a second year at the LTA annual meeting in London yesterday, Robbins said: "We cannot keep drifting. We seem to be drifting from event to event. Nothing very encouraging is happening."

This year, Britain were relegated to the Second Division of the Davis Cup Euro-African Zone - tennis's equivalent of the football Third Division - lost their places in the top flight of the men's and women's European team championships and failed to reach the main draw of the Federation Cup for the first time.

Robbins added: "Some of our players cannot seem to perform as well in a team environment as they do individually, unlike many players in the past. Buster Mottram, for example, was a much better Davis Cup player than he was as an individual.

"We do not seem to have the necessary talent at the moment and it worries me when I see good, young players coming out of other countries."