16-year-old American Iva Jovic pulls stunning US Open upset

Posted by author August 27, 2024 Tennis

Spread the love

Iva Jovic will have a heck of a story for her next online class.

The 16-year-old Californian pulled off a stunning U.S. Open upset Monday when she downed Poland’s Magda Linette, a 2023 Australian Open semifinalist, in straight sets.

Jovic won 6-4, 6-3 to set up a match with world No. 31 Ekaterina Alexandrova in the second round.

She is the youngest American to win a match in the U.S. Open main draw since 2000, according to the Associated Press.

“Surprised, but not surprised,” Jovic said, per the outlet.

“I just had a plan about what I was going to do before we started, and there weren’t that many needs for crazy adjustments, because it was going well. So just kind of sticking to that.”

Jovic is the fifth-ranked junior in the world and earned her way into the tournament by winning the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ National Championship earlier this month, per usopen.org.

She didn’t waste her chance to leave her mark by taking down the world No. 42 in convincing fashion.

Jovic won 69 percent of points on her first serve and 67 percent of her net points, while also converting 50 percent of her break-point chances.

She had 15 unforced errors compared to Linette’s 29.

Jovic joined Russia’s Mirra Andreeva (2023) and Katrina Scott of the United States (2020) as recent 16-year-olds to win a round at the U.S. Open, per the AP.

“I want to be the best that I can be,” Jovic said. “Just get better every day, honestly. Just keep working. I’m on a good path, but there’s a lot more to do.”

As she stars on the court, Jovic is still navigating teenage life.

She takes online courses, which she described to the Associated Press as “convenient and … very lenient.”

Jovic also will be entering the junior event later in the tournament, per the outlet.

Her favorite players are Novak Djokovic, with whom she has a selfie, and Belinda Bencic.

“Djokovic, I mean, do I need to say? We all know how great he is,” Jovic said. “And then Belinda, she just takes the ball so early and her footwork is very cutting the angle, so she just makes her opponents feel kind of suffocated. That’s what I would like to try to do.”