July 17, 2012
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame men’s tennis team will kick off the 2012 fall season in grand fashion as the squad will travel to Ireland for a matchup with members of the Irish Davis Cup team at the magnificent Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club on Aug. 31.
The Irish depart for Dublin, Ireland on Aug. 29, and arrive Aug. 30. The tennis team will practice on the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club’s synthetic grass courts upon arrival and then travel around Dublin checking out the local sights. The match begins at 2 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET) on Aug. 31 with singles competition. Doubles will follow the singles matches.
The team will cheer on some of their fellow student-athletes at the Notre Dame vs. Navy football game on Sept. 1 in Dublin’s Aviva Stadium before returning to campus on Sept. 2.
Fans heading to Dublin for the football game can buy tickets to the tennis match to catch both exciting Fighting Irish sporting events. Tickets to the tennis match are either $15 for general admission or $50 for a VIP ticket. The VIP ticket includes food and drink, entertainment including live Irish music and all access to the famous and historic Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club. Tickets can be purchased on the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club website here.
The Irish Davis Cup team will present quite a challenge to the young Notre Dame squad with veterans Conor Niland, James McGee, Sam Barry and Barry King on the roster. Niland played world No. 2 Novak Djokovic at last year’s U.S. Open, while McGree and Barry are both current ATP players.
King should sound familiar to Notre Dame fans, as he won 90 singles matches over his four-year career for the Irish and was named to the BIG EAST Championships doubles all-tournament team in 2005 with partner Ryan Keckley. King has also been an active member of the Irish Davis Cup squad.
“Our guys are certainly very excited to have this tremendous opportunity to compete against such a strong Irish contingent and to also play at the historic Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club,” said Bayliss. “Being able to cheer on our football team the next day at such an august occasion in Aviva Stadium is simply icing on the cake. This event gives us a chance to reunite with Barry King, who was such a great player for us from 2004-07. It will be interesting to see which team reacts most enthusiastically to the shout ‘Go Irish’.”
Established in 1877, and often called the Wimbledon of Ireland, the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club is one of the oldest tennis clubs in the world. More information on the tennis club can be found here.
A full 2012-13 schedule should be released in the coming weeks. For more information on Notre Dame men’s tennis, stay tuned to UND.com or follow the Irish on Facebook (facebook.com/NDMensTennis) or Twitter (@NDMensTennis).
–ND–