He's arrived! Andrija Jelavic spotted with Mark Pope at Cincinnati tennis match

The wait for Andrija Jelavic‘s arrival in the United States is over. On Saturday, the 6’9” Croatian forward was spotted with Kentucky head coach Mark Pope in Ohio, of all places, taking in the semifinals of the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament. A fellow tennis enthusiast recognized Jelavic in an aisle seat near Pope at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, enjoying the third-largest tennis tournament in the U.S.

Their row had to be the first-largest row at Saturday’s match.

Jelavic’s public appearance confirms the reports that Jelavic will join his new teammates and classmates in Lexington this weekend, ending the long and speculative wait after he missed the team’s summer workouts. His agent, Misko Raznatovic, told KSR to expect Jelavic’s arrival this weekend, so he is in place for the start of the fall semester on August 25, and the basketball activities that follow.

Official practices begin in September.

Pope set a high bar

Even before their trip to the Cincinnati Open — and before Jelavic officially landed stateside — Pope set lofty expectations for his newest roster addition. Though only 21 years old with no college basketball experience, Pope described Jelavic as a veteran.

“He’s been playing against grown men, so he should bring a lot,” Pope said in early July. “I think he’s a really good young man who’s been dreaming about this opportunity for a long time. I expect him to come here and have an immediate impact.”

Now, after months of waiting, Jelavic is finally in Kentucky, ready to get to work.

[Mark Pope hoping to get Andrija Jelavić on campus ‘as soon as possible’]