On Saturday, April 4, Iva Jovic will take on Jessica Pegula at the Charleston Open, and amid the match, she’s opening up about her personal life. Back in August of 2025, Jovic was the youngest player in the Cincinnati Open draw at 17 years old, and although she’s 18 now, she’s still among the youngest players at the Charleston Open.
Jovic, a California native, has worked hard to get to where she is in the tennis world. In June of 2025, she won her first WTA 125 title in Ilkley, England, and has been playing strong ever since.
Ahead of her match with Pegula, Jovic was asked about her next opponent. During a pre-match press conference, she said, “I think it’s obviously one of the best players in the world right now, and consistently for the past years. She’s very solid, doesn’t give away a lot, and places her serve very well.”
Jovic added, “You really have to beat her. She’s not going to have one of those days where, ‘Oh, I’m not playing so well.’” She also said that Pagula displayed “this week that even if she goes down, or if you’re having a hot start, she’s going to come back, and she’s going to make you really work for it. No one has been able to shut the door on her, yet.”
Iva Jovic Shares Personal Story About Her Parents and What She Does Outside of Tennis
In an August 2025 interview with Grant Thompson of the Cincinnati Open, Jovic opened up about her parents and how much their support means to her. Jovic is a California native whose parents came to the U.S. before Iva was born. Her father, Bojan, is Serbian, and her mother, Jelena, is Croatian.
“I think I learned a lot from them about hard work and having to earn everything that’s coming your way,” she said, adding that it “wasn’t easy” what they had to do to provide for her and the family. “They’re really great people. I’m so blessed to have them.”
She also shared a tidbit about what she does in her personal life for fun, when she’s not on the tennis court. Since she grew up in California, she loves the beach, but it goes beyond that.
“As a Cali girl, I think it’s all related to the beach,” she said. “I love boogie boarding. I love surfing. We paddleboard a ton. I love going to amusement parks. I love Six Flags.” She added, “We go to Knott’s Berry Farm [the amusement park] a ton. Just the Cali-girl stuff. I live super close to the beach, so when I’m home, I go to the beach almost every day.”
Iva Jovic Admits She Isn’t Home in California Often and Usually Spends Her Time Training in Florida
Jovic actually isn’t home a lot when she’s training. In the same interview, the athelete explained that she’s “not home very much” when she’s training, because she trains in Florida. “Even when I’m having an off week, I’m in Florida a lot of the time,” she said.
Finally, Jovic shared that her biggest inspiration to do tennis was growing up and watching Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, saying that Djokovic was a “huge inspiration,” as was Serena Williams.
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