One week after narrowly falling 4-3 to top-ranked Illinois in the quarterfinals of the National Indoor Championships, the sixth-ranked men's tennis team (5-1) will get a chance for revenge, as it hosts the Fighting Illini (7-0) Saturday at 6 p.m. in the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center.
"Illinois is clearly the number one team in the country right now, so it will be a challenge," Duke head coach Jay Lapidus said. "They're very well coached and very experienced, but we get them at our indoor facility and we're playing really well."
The Blue Devils came out strong against the defending national champion Illini when they faced them last weekend, claiming the doubles point with wins at No. 2 from Phillip King and Jonathan Stokke and at No. 3 from Stephen Amritraj and Peter Rodrigues.
However, Illinois took four-of-six singles matches, including a sweep of the top-three positions, to advance in the tournament and knock Duke into the consolation bracket.
"They are strong in every spot, especially at one, two and three in singles," Lapidus said. "We need to get some of those matches this time."
Freshman Peter Rodrigues, who has a perfect 6-0 spring singles record, and junior Jason Zimmerman were the only two Blue Devils to defeat their Illini opponents, while three-time All American King, Ludovic Walter, Stokke and Amritraj will look for revenge at the No.'s 1, 2, 3 and 5 spots, respectively.
Walter, ranked seventh in the nation, will get a rematch with Illinois' Phil Stolt, who took their first meeting by a 6-3, 6-3 margin.
"I need to return serve better and play more aggressively," Walter said. "I want to serve and volley a few times and mix it up. Last weekend we lost a close match to Illinois, so hopefully this time it will go our way."
History may be on Duke's side Saturday, as it was victorious in a similar situation two years ago. The Illini came to Durham in 2002 as the nation's top-ranked team, but the then-No. 19 Blue Devils emerged with a stunning 5-2 upset.
"We hosted them two years ago when they were number one, and we beat them then," Lapidus said. "It's an advantage to be at home, especially if we get a good, boisterous crowd."
Illinois enters Saturday's match with a 39-game winning streak dating back to the beginning of the 2003 season, and it is within striking distance of Stanford's NCAA-record 45 consecutive wins.
"This will be one of our toughest matches of the year," Illinois head coach Craig Tiley said. "To beat a team as good as Duke twice is a tough task. We are going to have to play good tennis at every position and remain healthy."
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