Jessica Pegula believes Iva Jovic has a rare trait that she has noticed in her breakthrough on the WTA Tour.
Jovic is one of the most exciting young players on the WTA Tour right now, with the 18-year-old climbing over 130 places in the rankings over the past year.
This has enabled the American to reach her current career-high singles ranking of world number 17, which Jovic reaching the Australian Open quarterfinal has helped her to achieve.
Pegula had high praise for Jovic after playing her for the first time in Dubai last month, and both she and Madison Keys have continued this at the Miami Open.
Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys praise ‘impressive’ Iva Jovic
Jovic is into the third round of the Miami Open in her debut appearance at the tournament after emphatically beating former world number two Paula Badosa 6-2, 6-1.
When speaking about her compatriot, Pegula praised Jovic for the improvements she has made to her game, as well as her maturity level at just 18 years of age.
“I’ve seen her improve so much, get so much stronger, hit the ball so much bigger,” said Pegula, as reported by miamiopen.com. “She works really, really hard. What stands out is just her maturity level at her age. You can tell she knows what she wants and is very sure of herself and not afraid out there.
“I remember watching her play in Australia and she went out on a night session and just absolutely destroyed somebody and I was like, ‘Wow, you know at that moment, that this stage isn’t really scaring her.”
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Pegula is not the only person who has been impressed by Jovic, with the aforementioned Keys also echoing a similar sentiment about the world number 17.
“The American women are continuing to do incredibly well,” said Keys. “I think for the past decade that we have set the standard. It’s really great to see that there are so many great younger players who are very quickly coming up the ranks and trying to take our position at the top of the game.
“Iva is such a great player; she’s so professional. I’m really impressed how willing she is to do everything she needs to do to get better.”
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Iva Jovic explains what her relationship is like with American players
Jovic is part of a group of five American players inside the top 20, with three of those inside the top six of the WTA rankings.
She is by far the youngest of these players, but Jovic has revealed that she has been welcomed with open arms by the rest of her fellow Americans.
“We have so many great players, having [three] in the top 10 speaks for itself,” said Jovic.
“I feel like I’ve been welcomed in the group. They’re all nice and pretty chill. No one is up in the clouds and we all have a good relationship. I practiced with [Keys] in Orlando. I went on her podcast. We talk, we complain and we laugh.”
| American WTA players in the top 30 | Ranking | Age |
| Coco Gauff | No.4 | 22 |
| Jessica Pegula | No.5 | 32 |
| Amanda Anisimova | No.6 | 24 |
| Iva Jovic | No.17 | 18 |
| Madison Keys | No.18 | 31 |
Jovic is already set to improve her career-high ranking to world number 16, and she could go even further if her run continues at the Miami Open.
Her next opponent is rising Australian star Talia Gibson, who Jovic beat in their only previous meeting on grass last year.
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