The Atlanta Open College Night presented by UTR Sports turned into College Day as the scheduled evening play was postponed due to rain.
But UTR Sports, the proud presenting partner of College Night for the second consecutive year, still showed once again how it is supporting and elevating college tennis and the college to pro tennis pathway.
UTR Sports was on-hand at the Atlanta Open, participating in the parade, handing out UTR Sports sunglasses, and taking part in the coin toss of the match between two-time Georgia Tech All-American Andres Martin, who received a wild card, and Juncheng “Jerry” Shang of China.
"UTR Sports has become the currency for college coaches to start their recruiting process," said Peter Lebedevs, Atlanta Open Tournament Director."UTR Sports has been tremendous to work with, they understand the space, they understand what we're trying to do."
Chase Hodges, Vice President of UTR Sports, said: “The Atlanta Open does a wonderful job of [showcasing college tennis] by granting a wild card to a collegiate player. [It] just shows their commitment to college tennis."
Martin (UTR Rating 13.96) was playing in his third consecutive College Night at the Atlanta Open. Two years ago, he sprung an upset against Aussie veteran Thanasi Kokkinakis.
But on Wednesday, Martin fell to Shang in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1. Shang (UTR Rating 14.97) saved both break points he faced and demonstrated why he has achieved a personal career-high ATP ranking of No. 89 this year.
Andres Martin is pursuing a pro tennis career after a successful college tennis career at Georgia Tech (photo credit: Atlanta Open).
Shang will next play top seed American Ben Shelton (UTR Rating 15.53), another former collegiate star. Shelton reached the 2023 US Open semifinals but got his first taste of pro tennis at a UTR Pro Tennis Tour tournament in 2021, where he made the finals.
In 2022, with his dad as his coach at the University of Florida, Shelton won the NCAA men's singles title.
"Anyone and everyone affiliated with pro tennis can see the impact that college tennis is having on the pro game. College players are certainly making their impact, and you can see that with the top seed here," Hodges said.
READ MORE: Shelton's Rise From College Tennis to Pro Tennis
Martin had another chance to play in front of the home crowd in the doubles draw, where he partnered with fellow former Georgia Tech standout Keshav Chopra (UTR Rating 13.05). The pairing put up a strong fight against Sem Verbeek and Andre Goransson but lost 6-4. 7-5.
As evident in Shelton's rise, UTR Sports supports and elevates the college tennis pathway in several ways, including creating opportunities for players to develop their games through College Circuits, open prize-money tournaments held on college campuses, and the UTR Pro Tennis Tour (PTT), where aspiring pros receive guaranteed matchplay and prize money.