Badger Invitational brings Wisconsin back to the court

Thursday, January 28

Madison, WI

Wisconsin Badgers

Individual Play

Men's tennis team huddle at Nielsen Tennis Stadium 2019

Photo by: David Stluka

Badger Invitational brings Wisconsin back to the court

January 27, 2021 | Men's Tennis

UW opens season by hosting Minnesota, Indiana and Nebraska in individual play at Nielsen

By: Miriam Jaber

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin men's tennis team returns to the courts this Thursday through Sunday as host of the Badger Invitational, welcoming Nebraska, Indiana and Minnesota to Nielsen Tennis Stadium for individual play in singles and doubles competition.

The Badgers are Back: For the first time in nearly a year, the Badgers are back to compete at Nielsen Tennis Stadium. The Badger Invitational marks UW's first competition since facing Minnesota in a dual on March 8, 2020 – days before the remainder of its season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fans can follow the team on Twitter (@BadgerMTennis), Instagram (@wisconsintennis) and UWBadgers.com for updates throughout the event. Live streaming video of most courts also will be available throughout the event.

The Tournament Layout: Over the course of the four-day event, each player on the Badgers' roster will get the opportunity to play singles and doubles matches in a round-robin format. The action will start at 6 p.m. Thursday with doubles matches featuring Wisconsin vs. Nebraska and Indiana vs. Minnesota. In the individual play format, team results will not be kept. Start times will be posted daily on Instagram and Twitter.

Westerman at the Helm: Former UW tennis star and seasoned coach Danny Westerman enters his sixth season with the Badgers. Westerman has the fourth most career wins in program history (64-48) and led the Badgers to the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

Seniors Lead the Way: Jesper Freimuth and Robert Krill will start their fourth seasons with the Badgers this week. Freimuth's career record in singles is 20-18 and 22-14 in doubles, while Krill's career records are 40-29 in singles and 18-15 in doubles.

Fired-Up Freshmen: Newcomers Tim Dzhurinskiy and Mihailo Popovic are scheduled to make their debut with the Badgers this week. A Manhattan Beach, California, native, Dzhurinskiy led his Mira Costa High School team to the Bay Area Classic and Bay League championships while playing No. 1 singles. Popovic, who hails from Belgrade, Serbia, won six Tennis Europe Championships advancing to the quarterfinals of the European Singles Championship and the finals for the European National Team Championships before coming to UW.

Badger Invitational Schedule

Thursday, Jan. 28
6 p.m.	Doubles	Wisconsin/Nebraska
	Doubles	Indiana/Minnesota

Friday, Jan. 29
9 a.m.	Singles	Wisconsin/Nebraska
1 p.m.	Doubles	Wisconsin/Indiana
	Doubles	Minnesota/Nebraska
1:45 p.m.	Singles	Minnesota/Indiana

Saturday, Jan. 30
9 a.m.	Singles	Wisconsin/Indiana
1 p.m.	Doubles	Wisconsin/Minnesota
	Doubles	Nebraska/Indiana
1:45 p.m.	Singles	Minnesota/Nebraska

Sunday, Jan. 31
9 a.m.	Singles	Nebraska/Indiana
Noon	Singles	Wisconsin/Minnesota