Iva Jovic has taken her home Grand Slam by storm thanks to a stunning opening-round victory in New York.

After a memorable US Open debut, we take you through all there is to know about the 16-year-old – who is set to crack the top 300 of the WTA Rankings after the tournament finishes.

Early Life and Family

Jovic was born in Torrance, California and, when not travelling for her burgeoning career, resides in Los Angeles with her family.

Her parents, dad Bojan and mother Jelena, are Serbian immigrants who moved to America before she was born; after her win, she revealed that one of her idols was Novak Djokovic.

As a child Jovic played a range of sports, including football, gymnastics, and swimming – though her focus was on tennis from a young age, playing alongside her older sister Mia.

Junior Career

There is a reason why Jovic has been a name on everyone’s lips for some time now; her junior CV is hugely impressive.

Back in 2021, she won the U14 singles event at the Orange Bowl and has twice won the doubles title in the famed junior event alongside Tyla Caterina Grant – doing so in 2022 and 2023.

She and Grant won the girls’ doubles title at the Australian Open earlier this year and, following a defeat in the French Open final, the pair bounced back to win the title at Wimbledon.

Jovic reached round three of girls’ singles at the US Open as a 14-year-old back in 2022, and this year reached the quarter-final of the French Open and the last four of Wimbledon.

Victories in the singles and doubles at the USTA U18 National Championships cemented her place as one of America’s hottest tennis prospects – and saw her awarded her US Open wildcard.

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Pro Career

Jovic is still eligible for junior events but has been making her way through the pro game since 2022.

In June of that year, she made her first professional tournament appearance at the SoCal Pro Circuit Jack Kramer Club event in Los Angeles, reaching the final.

In October 2023, she won her first career title at the $25k Ascension Project Women’s Open in Redding, California.

Round 1 Shock

The youngest player in the women’s draw, Jovic was handed a tough opener against Magda Linette, a former world No 19 and Australian Open semi-finalist – and veteran of 37 Grand Slam appearances.

Yet on Court 15 it was the American who looked the more experienced, wowing her home crowd with an astonishing 6-4, 6-3 victory against the world No 42.

For many, the occasion would have been too much – but the teen star revelled in the experience.

“I literally played on that exact court in the juniors,” she said in her press conference. “So it felt very comfortable. The atmosphere was pretty much the same.

“I had a plan about what I was going to do before I started, and there wasn’t any need for crazy adjustments, because it was going well. I’m surprised, but not surprised.”

Victory over a player 347 spots above her in the WTA Rankings significantly boosts her ranking, with Jovic up 104 spots to world No 285 in the live rankings.

She will face 29th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova next – with a place in round three at stake.

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