Who Is Iva Jovic? 5 Facts About Alex Eala's Doubles Partner at the 2026 ASB Classic
The pair beat tennis icon Venus Williams and her partner Elina Svitolina.
by Jam Nitura
Published on Jan 10, 2026
Tennis young guns Alex Eala and Iva Jovic started their ASB Classic Women’s Doubles bid with a major upset. The pair beat out veteran champions Venus Williams and Elina Svitolina to advance to the quarterfinals. Fast friends outside their sport, Alex and Iva went on to dominate until the semifinals, before being felled by Chinese duo Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan.
As the Philippines continues to cheer Alex on in every match, let’s also get to know her formidable American partner, who can equally hold her own on the court.
Who Is Iva Jovic?
She started playing tennis at just 5 years old.
Born in California on December 6, 2007, Iva plays for the USA, though her parents hail from Serbia and Croatia. She first picked up a racquet at 5 years old and she hasn’t looked back since, often training with her sister when she was younger. At 14, she won the Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships, a prestigious tournament in the junior circuit, cementing her name as a rising tennis prodigy.
She’s participated in two Gand Slam tournaments.
Now playing at a professional level, Iva made her Grand Slam debut at the 2024 US Open. At 17 years old, she was the youngest competitor in the lineup, where she managed to beat Polish player Magda Linette, before bowing out in the second round. She followed this up in 2025 by participating at the Australia Open in January.
She’s a big fan of Novak Djokovic.
Iva says she grew up watching the tennis legend play and that he's served as a major inspiration for her to pursue her own dreams. She has his autograph but has yet to formally meet him. “I’m a little bit shy. I don’t know, I was just talking about this with my coach, he has this aura when he walks in a room, you’re like oh my gosh Novak’s here,” she said in an interview for the BNP Paribas Open.
She loves surfing.
Even her hobbies display how athletic she is. Iva loves boogie boarding, surfing, and paddleboarding, especially when she’s at home in California, sharing that she frequents the beach almost every day. She also enjoys going to amusement parks in her free time, like Six Flags and Knott’s Berry Farm.
She can speak fluent Serbian
Iva’s parents emigrated to the United States before she was born. Though she grew up in the US, she made sure to learn her dad’s native language so she could still talk to her grandparents and the rest of her relatives. The skill has since proven useful in her tennis career. “I’m super grateful that I have that because now at these international events, it’s another group of people that I can communicate with,” she told the Cincinnati Open.
