ORLANDO, Fla. -  Illinois men's tennis player Aleks Kovacevic was named to the 2021 USTA Collegiate Summer team. Kovacevic is one of five college men's players to be selected.

Kovacevic finished his career as an Illini with 102 career singles wins and helped Illinois capture the 2021 Big Ten Tournament Championship. He is a two-time ITA All-American and three-time First Team All-Big Ten, twice unanimously. This year he reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA Singles Tournament after reaching the semifinals in 2019.

The top 10 American players are chosen to the training program, which is designed to help America's premier college players assimilate to professional tennis in a team-oriented environment via the USTA Pro Circuit.

2021 USTA Collegiate Summer Team
 
Men
William Blumberg, North Carolina (Sr., Greenwich, Conn.)
Cannon Kingsley, Ohio State (Soph., Northport, N.Y.)
Aleks Kovacevic, Illinois (Sr., New York)
John McNally, Ohio State (Sr., Cincinnati)
Sam Riffice, Florida (Jr., Orlando, Fla.)
 
Women
Sara Daavettila, UNC (Sr., Williamston, Mich.)
Abbey Forbes, UCLA (Soph., Raleigh, N.C.)
Emma Navarro, Virginia (Fr., Charleston, S.C.)
Alexa Noel, Iowa (Fr., Summit, N.J.)
Peyton Stearns, Texas (Fr., Mason, Ohio)
 
Each of the players were selected based on their ATP or WTA singles ranking or a combination of their pro and ITA singles rankings and their Universal Tennis Rating. Players on the team are eligible to receive a grant for travel to USTA Pro Circuit events and coaching support over four weeks this summer. Virginia sophomore Natasha Subhash was eligible to compete on the team but will be unable to due to injury.

"The USTA continues to recognize and support collegiate tennis as a viable part of the professional player pathway and is committed to providing the top American collegiate players with developmental and competitive opportunities," said Martin Blackman, GM, USTA Player and Coach Development.