BERKELEY – California men's tennis returns to the road to play indoors at Illinois on Friday at 6 p.m. CT and at Michigan on Sunday at 12 p.m. ET.
 
For Friday's match, fans can access live video and stats at the Atkins Tennis Center in Urbana, Illinois, by clicking here. The video and scores link for the Varsity Tennis Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, are available here.
 
The Golden Bears bring a 3-1 record into the match in Urbana – Cal's first trip there since 1920 – while Illinois also has a 3-1 record. Michigan is likewise 3-1, though the Wolverines play host to Florida on Friday and then to Harvard on Saturday before battling the Bears on Sunday.
 
Based on the two current polls, all three teams are ranked nationally. The Oracle ITA rankings list Cal 21st, Illinois 12th and Michigan 14th. The USTA top 25 has Cal 23rd, with Illinois 12th and Michigan 15th.
 
Cal Earns Head Coaching Endowment
A new endowment announced Jan. 25 to fund the head-coaching position for men's tennis at Cal will be made possible by a $3 million anonymous gift. The position will be named for current Golden Bears boss Peter Wright after his retirement.
 
The men's tennis head coaching position funded by the endowment has been retitled Director of Men's Tennis, and upon Wright's retirement – nowhere in sight for the 54-year-old coach – the title will officially become the Peter Wright Director of Men's Tennis.
 
Wright, who has served as Cal's head coach since 1993, is an ITA Regional Coach of the Year, recipient of the 2017 ITA Meritorious Service Award and three-time Conference Coach of the Year. He has taken his Golden Bear teams to the NCAA Tournament 23 times and seen his student-athletes earn 20 All-America selections along with numerous academic awards. A Berkeley native, Wright earned a B.A. in Social Science from Cal, where he played tennis as a four-year letter winner before competing as a professional player, Irish Davis Cup player and Davis Cup captain, and serving as the Irish Olympic tennis coach.
 
Poll Position
In the last Oracle ITA doubles rankings, from Nov. 15, the pair of senior J.T. Nishimura and freshman Jacob Brumm (1-1 record) were ranked 51st, while Nishimura and senior Billy Griffith (12-5) were ranked 52nd.
 
Michigan has two ranked singles players in No. 9 Alex Knight and No. 20 Runhao Hua. Knight and Hua are also the nation's 19th-ranked doubles team.
 
New team polls will come out on Wednesday, with new Oracle ITA singles and doubles rankings also coming out on Wednesday.
 
Last Time: Bears Split In ITA Kick-Off Weekend
Cal closed the ITA Kick-Off Weekend on Jan. 29 in Berkeley with a 4-3 victory over Oregon, as freshman Jack Molloy topped the Ducks' Akihiro Tanaka, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, at court-three singles to clinch the match. Earlier, brothers Dominic Barretto and Paul Barretto secured the doubles point with a 6-4, court-three win over Ty Gentry and Simon Stevens.

On Jan. 28, the then-No. 19 Bears lost to No. 22 Tulane, 4-3, in the Kick-Off Weekend opener.
 
Next Time
Cal returns to the Hellman Tennis Complex to host Stanford in a nonconference match on Feb. 24 at 1 p.m.