Former Illini Rajeev Ram may have been knocked out of the Northwestern Mutual USTA Challenger singles contest on Wednesday night by Eric Taino, but he still has another opportunity to experience success tonight at 6 p.m. at Atkins Tennis Center.

Ram and his 18-year-old partner Brian Baker face No.1 seed Diego Ayala and Jeff Morrison.

Despite facing the No.1 duo early on in the tournament, Baker is optimistic.

"(Ayala and Morrison) are definitely a solid doubles team, but we're not going to come into the match intimidated," Baker said. "If we play well, anyone has a shot to win."

Ram has already elevated the Illinois men's tennis program to an unprecedented level by appearing in the second round of the singles tournament, which no other Illini has done.

"(Advancing to the second round), is great for Rajeev," said Illinois head coach Craig Tiley. "We have this tournament every year so we can give our players an opportunity to compete against the best in the world and see how they do. And give them all the experience they can get."

Ram fell 6-3, 7-6(5) to Taino after two grueling victories on Tuesday, one singles win over Hermes Gamonal and one doubles performance, besting former doubles standout Bobby Reynolds and former teammate Amer Delic.

"Today's match was tough," Ram said. "I definitely had my chances. I was up 40-love and he broke back. Had a few points gone a little differently, I could have been on the other side of the results."

Ram's match, which was scheduled to start at 6 p.m. was pushed back to 7:30 p.m. after several long three-set matches earlier in the day.

"(Starting late) wasn't so bad," Ram said. "I had to adjust my day to it. I had to warm-up later and hit later, but it wasn't that bad."

Even before the results of Ram's match were finalized, Baker was sure his doubles partner would be well prepared for today's action.

"I don't think that (the outcome) will affect us too much," Baker said. "I'm sure that he'll be able to get pumped up."

Baker should know, too. He and Ram were a dominant force at the juniors level, appearing in the Wimbledon junior doubles finals.

"We got through a tough match yesterday against Bobby and Amer," Ram said. "They're not ranked, but they're still very good and it was a good match. We played well yesterday and we'll have to play well tomorrow. It's good to have played together and to have one win under our belts though."

Illinois senior Michael Calkins and junior Chris Martin were looking for a win last night, as well, after a disappointing performance at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Indoors tournament.

The duo didn't win, but they did get their redemption. The men fell 7-6(5), 7-5 to Josh Goffi and Tripp Phillips.

"We played well, but the team that we played, played really well too," Calkins said. "The first set there were no breaks. They just came up with some great shots. At this level, it just takes one break."

Illinois seniors Phil Stolt and Brian Wilson fell as well too, 7-5, 6-2.

"I have mixed feelings about tonight," Stolt said. "We played well, we just played a couple lose points when Brian was serving. We missed some easy balls today."

Despite early exits from the tournament, the men are encouraged by their results.

"We're always blessed that the tournament's on campus," Calkins said. "It's close to home and gives us the opportunity to give us a head start in our tennis careers."

For Stolt, just returning to the tennis courts after back surgery in August is something to be thankful for.

"The challenger was a blessing. To be able to play again and just get back onto the court," Stolt said "To be able to play at this level after only being back for three or four weeks is pretty encouraging."

Not only is the experience a great chance for the Illini to prepare for the spring, the men have been given a little taste of what a career in professional tennis could be like.

"It's just a little extra motivation," Calkins said. "This is their life. You have to start low and prove yourself."

Calkins' long-time friend Travis Parrott is competing in the challenger as well. Parrott has coupled with Bruno Soares to create the No. 4 doubles tandem. Having played with Parrott for the majority of his youth has motivated Calkins, too.

"Travis is getting to the level now where he's playing really well," Calkins said. "He's been doing this for a while though and he's paid his dues. He's finally getting to the bigger tournaments and higher levels where he can experience a lot of success."

Tonight, Ram, a 19-year-old former Illini is hoping to make a name for himself and Baker in the doubles arena.

"If we didn't know each other so well, we'd have to take a few sets to get to know each other and really gel," Ram said. "(Today's) match is really just going to come down to execution."