Chambana Sun

The Illinois men's tennis team, ranked No. 20, is set to face No. 12 Michigan in a non-conference match on Saturday at the Atkins Tennis Center in Urbana, Illinois. This encounter marks the first of two scheduled meetings between these Big Ten rivals this season, with a subsequent match planned for April 4 in Ann Arbor.

Admission to the event is free as Illinois seeks its first victory over Michigan since the 2020-21 season. The Illini recently returned to their home court with victories against Clemson and Notre Dame, both by scores of 4-3. Key performances came from Kenta Miyoshi and William Mroz, who secured crucial wins at No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions respectively.

Michigan arrives in Champaign-Urbana after participating in the ITA National Team Indoor Championship, where they achieved a win over SMU but fell to Virginia and Texas A&M. The Wolverines have a record of 2-4 against ranked opponents this season and have notable players such as Benjamin Kittay and Gavin Young featuring prominently in ITA rankings.

Historically, Michigan has dominated recent encounters with Illinois, winning the last five matches between them. The rivalry dates back to the early 1920s when they first met during the 1921-22 season.

Saturday's match will showcase several top-ranked players from both teams. For Illinois, Kenta Miyoshi is ranked No. 12 in singles while William Mroz holds the No. 45 spot. Michigan's Benjamin Kittay and Gavin Young are also highly ranked individually and together form one of the top doubles pairs nationally.