COLUMBIA, S.C. – Harvard men's tennis (1-3) fell to a strong Clemson (2-1) team this afternoon in the ITA Kickoff Weekend Championship in Columbia, S.C.

The Tigers struck first with a win at the No. 2 doubles spot, but Kolos Kincses and Rohan Murali followed with their second win of the weekend, defeating Matisse Farzam and Yannic Nittmann (Clemson), 6-3. 

Clemson ultimately stole the doubles point after battling to a 7-5 victory at the top spot.

Rohan Murali tied the match with another impressive win over a ranked opponent.  For the second time in as many matches, Murali recorded a top-25 win today defeating No. 21 Romain Gales (Clemson), 6-2, 6-1. 

Despite pressuring the Tigers, Murali's win would be the only of the day for the Crimson.  Clemson would seal the match with wins on court one and six, and the clinching win on court five. 

Results

Harvard – 1, Clemson – 4
Doubles

1. Romain Gales/Noa Vukadin (Clemson) def. Nathan Blokhin/Benjamin Privara (Harvard), 7-5
2. Henrik Bladelius/Viktor Markov (Clemson) def. Masato Perera/Elisha Thornton (Harvard), 6-3
3. Kolos Kincses/Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Matisse Farzam/Yannic Nittmann (Clemson), 6-3

Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles

1. Viktor Markov (Clemson) def. Benjamin Privara (Harvard), 6-4, 6-1
2. Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. No. 21 Romain Gales (Clemson), 6-2, 6-1
3. Nathan Blokhin (Harvard) vs. Noa Vukadin (Clemson), 6-7 (2), 2-5 DNF
4. Masato Perera (Harvard) vs. Matisse Farzam (Clemson), 6-7 (5), 3-5 DNF
5. Marko Mesarovic (Clemson) def. Kolos Kincses (Harvard), 6-3, 7-5
6. Eduardo Cherie Ligniere (Clemson) def. Mitchell Lee (Harvard), 6-0, 6-2

Order of finish: 2, 1, 6, 5

Next Up

The Crimson will play on its courts for the first time this season as it welcomes Purdue to the Murr Center on Friday, January 30 at 5:00 p.m. ET.