"I went to a Shakira concert two days before the tournament" - Iva Jovic explains how greatest accomplishment on court occurred after seeing Shakira live

Iva Jovic is one of the brightest tennis players on the WTA Tour with bundles of potential and a glistening future at the top of tennis. Still a teenager, she has adapted well and is now a regular threat at all the biggest tournaments. Behind the player on court, there is another personality as she unveils when speaking to the WTA. From attending a Shakira concert before winning her biggest title to date to allowing intrusive thoughts in her mind ahead of matches to her biggest haters, Jovic spilled the beans on herself.

It is somewhat of a brag to say that your first ever WTA match was at the US Open. This was the case for the American who would also go on to win it in a triumphant start to her professional career. "That's a great one. Oh my God, how do I not remember this? I do, of course. It was at the US Open, which is kind of funky because your first WTA match is at a Grand Slam," she said.

"I'd just won the USTA Nationals and it was so fun. I actually won a round and did really well, so I was pretty darn happy about that. I played Magda Linette in the first round and I was so nervous. She was obviously upset when I beat her and I was like, 'Oh my God, we're never going to be friends again.' Then she was so nice, and we've practised together all the time since. So, we love Magda."

The Pole may have been in the conversation for the person she most admired, but a three-time Grand Slam finalist got her pick. "Wow, that is tough because I admire all these women so much. They're all doing pretty incredible things. But I would say Ons Jabeur is so freaking cool. She's so amazing. She's so nice. I don't know how someone can compete so hard and still be so nice at the same time, so kudos to her."

As the WTA Tour moves back to her native North America, Jovic will be relishing a return to hardcourt. Despite being versatile on all surfaces, her prior experiences playing on hardcourts have continued throughout her entire life. "Okay, so I'm an LA girl, a Cali girl," she stated. "I grew up playing on hard courts my entire life, so I have to say hard courts. But then I had to start playing on everything, so now I'm kind of even. I like it all, but you always like what you grew up on, I think. So, hard courts."

It was a hardcourt that hosted Jovic's most proudest moment in her very young tennis career. "Okay, I'm not going to go way back in the archives. I'd say the WTA 500 in Guadalajara. I wasn't even sure I was going to play the tournament. It was just me and my dad there. It felt like we were just hanging out and having fun, and then I ended up winning the title. I was like, 'What?!' Yeah, whoop whoop! Yay me! It was incredible and I loved it, so let's try to keep that going."

Before that title run, Jovic revealed that she had been to a Shakira concert. "Fun fact: while I was in Mexico, I went to a Shakira concert two days before the tournament. I don't know if that's unprofessional, but it worked, so it's good. Guys, go to concerts!"

Jovic has been fortunate enough to learn from some of the world's best, including 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic who has popped in from time to time with words of wisdom. When it came to the best piece of advice, Jovic cited something her uncle said. "My uncle once told me—this is very tennis-specific—'You just have to win the last point of the match. That's all you have to do, and you're going to have a lot of success in your career.' I was like, 'That's really wonderful.' Easier said than done, though! A lot of people have also told me to just have fun with it and keep the good vibes going. I think that's really important."

She has gained a valuable amount of experience already, very much needed when walking onto the biggest courts in the world against the best competitors. Many of these top talents have superstitions, and so does Jovic. "I used to listen to 'One Dance' by Drake before every match. It had to be the last song I heard before walking onto court," she explained.

"Then I thought, 'Okay, this is getting a little out of hand. You can't let these things control your life. That's not the reason you win or lose.' So I stopped. Now I just listen to whatever I want.

It is hard to stick completely to task with 'intrusive thoughts' clouding her mind. "I still get intrusive thoughts, though. It'll be like, 'If you don't tie your shoes again, you're going to lose.' It's like, 'What? No one's saying that!' Sometimes I deliberately do the opposite of what my brain tells me just to fight those thoughts."

Them pesky intrusive thoughts are regularly trying to devoid Jovic of her focus before strolling onto court. "Just the most random things. Like, 'What was I doing this time last year?' or 'That was a really good dinner—I wonder what I'm going to eat after the match.' Or, 'I wonder what my dad is doing right now,' or "My sister has an exam. Is she okay?' I'm like, 'I probably shouldn't be thinking about this right now,' but I actually think it's better that way. It's better to stay loose. You can't take it too seriously."

Like in any sport, tennis has its fair share of doubters and critics, waiting for the players to fail just to jump on the bandwagon and torment their intended target. Jovic was asked for her biggest doubter in her journey to the top. "There's a fair share of haters," she acknowledged.

"I think it's the people who believe others need to shrink for them to succeed, instead of wanting everyone to keep rising and simply saying, "I'm going to be better than everyone at their best." Those people with that negative mentality are probably my biggest doubters. But you know what? Be the bigger person and just go out there and win. That's all you can do. Haters gonna hate. Winners gonna win. I just made that up."

Tennis can also be a very emotional sport. Jovic keeps her emotions in check on court but in her younger years when her competitive spirit was very high, an outburst was common. "Probably the first time I played tennis. I was the most competitively annoying kid," she said. "I threw tantrums every time I lost at anything when I was under 10. So probably the first time I lost a tennis match. Looking back now, I think, 'That was the most irrelevant thing ever. Who cares in the grand scheme of things?' But at the time I genuinely thought the world was ending. It's really not that deep."

The most recent time she cried was that Guadalajara title win in 2025. "I was playing the final against Emiliana Arango, who's literally in the room right there," she reminisced. "She wasn't feeling the best during the final, and I ended up winning. It was just so emotional because she's such a good friend. I kind of wanted both of us to win—but especially for her to feel better. She was congratulating me afterwards, saying, 'Iva, congrats,' and I just started crying while she was talking. I was like, 'You're so sweet.'"

From the likes of Alexandra Eala and Victoria Mboko, Jovic is a very popular person on the WTA Tour with a number of friendships. Especially with the other talents from the USA, it is a special bond they all have. "It means everything. Tennis is such an individual sport, so it's really nice having friends you're basically travelling around the world with. It's like one big field trip that we're all on right now. It means everything not to feel lonely out here."

A reason for that may be for her personality away from the court, completely contrasting from her in performance mode. "Probably just how much of a goofball I am off the court. I'm so focused and intense during matches, but off the court I'm just all over the place. I have a terrible memory. I forget literally everything. So, yeah... I'm just all over the place in general."