THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 5, 2026

Iva Jovic

Press Conference

J. PEGULA/I. Jovic

4-6, 6-3, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Iva, a tough one today, but could you share some thoughts on the match.

IVA JOVIC: I mean, I think it was a good match from her end. From my end in some moments too. Super physical. I think she just, yeah, she made better adjustments than I did in those moments.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Tough luck today. Jess was talking how for her the first set she felt she was in a ping-pong match in that she didn't think she was being proactive and being reactive, hitting the ball back and forth. Did you see it the same way? What adjustments from her end do you think made the difference in those other two sets?

IVA JOVIC: Well, I think in general I didn't serve well in the whole match. In the first I got away with it because she was also serving a bit lower percentage, so I was able to break her a lot.

I was kind of just living and dying off of being able to break serve, which she made the adjustment and she started playing with a little more spin on her serve and breaking my rhythm on the returns and making her first-serve percentage go up. Mine stayed low (smiling).

So yeah, little disappointed in myself that I wasn't able to make better adjustments with that. Something I really need to work on.

Q. You have played her on a few different surfaces this year. Curious about what she poses as a challenge for you as a player. You have experienced her different places and surfaces.

IVA JOVIC: I mean, I think the first time, like, we played earlier in the year was kind of, she was definitely much better at the time, and I think the last two were super close. I had my chances. I don't even remember that much about Charleston at this point.

She's just very stable. I mean, she brings very, you know, stable energy and level throughout the whole match. So if you kind of have any little dips, then she takes advantage. So definitely very difficult. That's why she is where she is and has success on all the surfaces.

But again, I think it's very simple. I didn't serve well. She served better. I got broken. I mean, you can't get broken that many times. I think my first-serve percentage was under 50%. You can't beat a top-5 player with that.

Q. Was the wind a factor in that? You hesitated numerous times.

IVA JOVIC: It was windy, but honestly, it's just, yeah, it's the least consistent shot I think for me. So it's definitely going to be my main priority to get that more consistent for the U.S. swing.

But obviously I can say that from the ground and level-wise, all these things, I'm right where I need to be. It's just about moments. When you're in a three-set battle like that, it's just about moments that you need to do better.

Q. Going off that, oftentimes players may say their serve either is working or not working. I know it wasn't working today. Is it the ball toss? Contact point? Can you elaborate? Is it comprehensively everything about the serve in particular?

IVA JOVIC: Honestly, that's a great question. I would love to see the response of someone like Aryna or something like that who has such a great serve and has such a great weapon. I wonder what they do in those moments. I could probably take a page from their books.

For me, like, you get almost a little anxious if you're not feeling your serve, because then you feel the pressure of playing behind your second. It just a little bit deteriorates your game when you don't have the confidence that you can hold. I think that's what kind of happened.

Then I got a little bit even more anxious in trying to go for these big serves instead of just trying to go for less and trust from the ground. I think it's the problem of the panic that it kind of gets in to when you feel you're not serving well.

Again, like, obviously it's early in my career, so I think it's something I can get much better at. But I'm not very patient (smiling). I would love to get it better ASAP.

Q. Good run. Her best results have come on hard courts obviously in her career. It looks like grass is potentially really great for her because of how flat she hits the ball. Do you feel that that surface really suits her in some ways? I know you felt like you had the match in hand at one point. But do you have a sense of how her ball reacts on this compared to other things?

IVA JOVIC: Yeah, I mean, I think she's probably just as good on the grass and the hard. She plays very flat. She plays early. Her strokes are very compact, so she's not rushed very often.

I mean, she's already in the quarters now, right? I think she can keep going here, definitely. I think it's a great surface. I feel like she's proven she can play on everything. Definitely the faster courts are even better for her.

Q. Would you like to see Jess win one of these? She's never done it.

IVA JOVIC: I would like to see her win, yeah. Fellow American, nice girl. I would like to see it happen, yeah. I think she can do it.

Q. You have been on a pretty steady ascent. What do you feel like your level is with the top players? You have played a lot of them now.

IVA JOVIC: I mean, I think my results and everything speak for where I'm at right now. I think every loss I have had in this European swing has been in three sets.

Obviously I had a good win against Amanda in Queen's. So I think I'm where I'm at, you know. I'm somewhere in the top 20. I don't know where exactly. But in order for me to break the top 10 and consistently get to that level, I just need to keep improving.

Yeah, the first two shots in the point, once you're more stable with those, I think you can consistently beat the top players.

Getting closer, but need to work a little bit more to get there.

Q. Are you staying up late to watch the U.S. play?

IVA JOVIC: I think I will, yeah. I want to watch the England/Mexico match, too. Yeah, I'm going to watch the U.S., too.