Kick Starter: Jovic on Key to Grass Surge
Richard Pagliaro | Friday, July 3, 2026
Photo credit: Shaun Brooks/CameraSport
Long before Iva Jovic won her first match on lawn, she was already getting her kicks on grass.
Moving across No. 12 Court with the speed of a striker targeting the goal, Jovic defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 today to advance to the Wimbledon round of 16 for the first time.
The 18-year-old Jovic scored her third career Top 20 win.
Two of those three Top 20 victories have come against Wimbledon finalists. Jovic topped 2025 Wimbledon finalist Amanda Anisimova, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, in last month’s Queen’s Club quarterfinals. That victory came six months after Jovic surprised the 2024 Wimbledon finalist Jasmine Paolini en route to the Australian Open quarterfinals.
So how has Jovic, who failed to qualify for SW19 last year, strengthened her grass-court game in her maiden main-draw appearance?
The Southern California native cites her years as a junior soccer standout for sharpening her speed, agility and balance on grass.
“Playing soccer, I played since I was 6, 7, up until 13, very frequently,” Jovic told the media today. “I think it helps a lot with footwork.
“It’s very closely related to the movement that we do in tennis. So I think every young athlete should play soccer, football, yeah.”
Indeed, past Wimbledon champions Novak Djokovic, who is Jovic’s tennis hero and a mentor, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and John McEnroe all played youth soccer growing up. Jovic, an avid World Cup follower, believes soccer has also aided her court-sense in tennis.
In fact, Jovic, who calls grass her favorite surface, has tried turning off the pressure of playing Wimbledon by tuning into World Cup soccer.
“I have been following the World Cup very closely, actually,” Jovic said. “It’s been my fun evening to-do.
Unfortunately, some of the games are very late. The ones that are like 5:00, 6:00, 7:00, 8:00, I’m always watching.”
American fans will be watching the all-American clash between fourth-seeded Jessica Pegula and Jovic pitting two players with strong football ties. Pegula’s family owns the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and Jovic, who grew up watching the former US Open finalist, said she sees shared similarities between the pair.
“Definitely. People would tell me growing up to watch Jess, to watch and try to kind of do the things
she does on the court,” Jovic said. “I think there is a lot of things we do well, and we do similar, but a couple of differences too.
“I don’t think we’re, you know, the same in all categories. Hopefully, I can play our game better. I don’t know.”
The owner of 11 career titles, Pegula has beaten Jovic in both of their prior meetings, scoring a 6-4, 6-2 win in Dubai and a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 triumph on the Har Tru of Charleston.
While grass is Jovic’s favorite surface, Pegula, a 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinalist, has had big moments on lawn as well. Last year, Pegula defeated Iga Swiatek to win the Bad Homburg championship on grass then Swiatek went on to win Wimbledon.
“I think definitely this is a surface that probably favors both of us,” Jovic said. “Yeah, I like playing on the
grass. I don’t know. Hopefully, this will be the one I get her.
“You know, I’m 2-nil down, so I need to get a win on her here. I think I’ve improved as a player a lot since the first two times I played her. Hopefully I can show that and hang tough here.”
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