WACO, Texas – Baylor junior Adrian Boitan is set to compete for Team Romania in the Davis Cup on Friday in Marbella, Spain, at the Puente Romano Club de Tenis.
Romania is facing Spain in the first round of qualifiers in the Davis Cup.
“It’s great to have this opportunity to play such a strong team with a great history and tradition in this sport,” said Boitan, who is 28th in the latest ITA singles rankings for the No. 4 Baylor men’s tennis team. “I will play against guys that are some of the best tennis players in the world, ranked inside the top-20 ATP. It will be a great test and opportunity for me; lots of things to learn and only positives can come from it. Excited to come back to Baylor after as a better player and keep improving.”
Boitan will face Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, ranked 15th in the world, in Friday’s first match. They will be playing outdoors on clay, with first match set for noon local Spain time, 4 a.m. CT. He’ll then play match five against 19th-ranked Carlos Alcaraz on Saturday, March 5.
“What an honor it is for Adrian to represent his country in the Davis Cup this weekend,” said Baylor head coach Michael Woodson. “Romania is competing in the World Group Qualifying round for the first time in about a decade, so the tie against Spain will bring competition against some of the top 15-20 players in the world. For Adrian to not only be selected to represent his country, but to earn a position in the starting lineup is a testament to the hard work he is putting in and the success he is having both within our program and in outside competition. We are excited to pull for him as a team here in Champaign and are proud of the way he represents our university and tennis program day in and day out.”
The winning nations in the qualifiers will join Croatia, Russian Tennis Federation, Great Britain and Serbia in the finals. The 12 losing nations will compete in the World Group I ties in September.
After Boitan finishes both matches in the Davis Cup, he will fly to Arizona to meet the rest of the Baylor team.
Boitan played for Team Romania in the World Group Playoff in November, besting Jorge Brian Panta of Peru at 6-4, 6-4 in his Davis Cup debut. His win helped Romania defeat Peru, 4-0.
Also playing in the Davis Cup is former Bear John Peers, who will be playing doubles for Team Australia with Luke Saville on Friday in Sydney against Hungary.
NEXT UP
Baylor (14-1) is set to face No. 58 Illinois (3-6) at 6 p.m. CT Friday in Champaign.
To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor men’s tennis, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorMTennis.
– BaylorBears.com –
