For the Illinois men’s tennis players, playing in a professional tournament usually means taking a rare weekend off to drive across the country and play without their coaches and friends – if they can even get in to the event. But for one week each year, professional tennis comes to them.

Beginning Saturday, Atkins Tennis Center will host its 11th professional Challenger Series tournament, the team’s first major home event of the year and an opportunity for the current men’s tennis team to face some of their former teammates and an unusually strong crop of professional players.

“It’s exposure for a lot of our guys to that next level,” coach Brad Dancer said. “The more you’re exposed to that … you tend to realize that you’re right there knocking on the door, even when you thought you were a few steps away.”

Most of the Illini aspire to play professionally someday, and some have started down that path already. Junior Kevin Anderson, one of the best servers in all of college tennis, qualified for a Challenger for the third time this week in Nashville, winning three matches against professional opponents to make it into the main tournament. In the first round, he came within two games of defeating Vince Spadea, a former top-20 player and the tournament’s top seed.

“That was really encouraging because I really didn’t serve well,” Anderson said. “It was one of the best matches I’ve ever played from the back of the court, and it shows that I’m not too far off from getting to that stage.”

Anderson qualified for the Illinois Challenger last year and became the first Illinois player to make the second round of the event – but only when his opponent quit early in the first set. This year, he is likely to receive a wild card into the main draw, letting him avoid the rigors of the qualifying tournament.

Anderson said he would love to have another shot at Spadea, who is likely to be the top seed in Champaign. He will be part of a group of professionals that include three former top-20 players and three current top-100 players, both tournament firsts. The highlight of the entry list is former Wimbledon and U.S. Open finalist Mark Philippoussis, who is trying to re-establish himself as an elite player after injuries have derailed his career.

“It’s definitely the best field we’ve ever had,” tournament director Jim Tressler said.

Several former Illini will return as pros, led by Amer Delic, who won a Challenger Series event in Louisville last week. Ryler DeHeart, Rajeev Ram, and Brian Wilson – all of whom won national tournaments while Illini – will appear as well.

Other than Anderson and Ryan Rowe, who earned a wild card into the qualifying draw by winning the pre-qualifying tournament in October, the rest of the Illini will have to wait and see if they make it into the draw. Dancer said he was hopeful the Illini would have a large contingent in the tournament, but freshman Sasha Kharkevitch said he was excited for the event even if he did not get to play.

“It’s a good opportunity to see some of the best players in the world,” Kharkevitch said. “I can see where my game should be at, and it’s fun to see some of the old alums play.”

Dancer said the tournament would expose the team to a more professional atmosphere than they are accustomed.

“Our guys don’t typically play with ball kids and multiple linesmen, so it’s a little bit of a different experience for them,” Dancer said. “It sharpens us all a little bit.”