Novak Djokovic advice inspired Iva Jovic to first Top 10 win, Australian Open fourth round

MELBOURNE, Australia—When preparing to play one of the biggest tennis matches of your life, it doesn’t hurt to get some advice from a 24-time Grand Slam champion.

Iva Jovic revealed a chat with Novak Djokovic helped inspired the 18-year-old into a maiden Top 10 victory over Jasmine Paolini, conquering the No. 8 seed, 6-2, 7-6 (3).

“He gave me some very attentive tips for my game and something I can try to incorporate into this match that I just played,” Jovic said in her post-match press conference on Friday, “so that was one of the things in the forefront of my mind, because I think when Novak gives you some advice, you follow it!”

Jovic, a Serbian-American born in Torrance, California, first met Djokovic during last year’s Wimbledon Championships, the chance meeting facilitated by USTA coach Kathy Rinaldi.

“We were practicing on the indoor courts at Wimbledon and he just walked in to a court close to us. His son was playing, and Kathy was like, ‘Let’s go up to him right now!’ I was like, ‘Kathy!’” Jovic laughingly recalled during the 2025 US Open.

“He just wished me luck and told me to keep working,” she added. “It was kind of just a little bit of an introduction. I met Jelena there too, and his sons were playing. It was just so cool. There was nothing super specific said but just the way he talks, he has a thing about himself where you can tell that he’s great. Not even seeing him on the tennis court, he has that presence, which is super cool.”

In the midst of playing his 21st Australian Open main draw, Djokovic was more specific this time in talking to Jovic, who is playing her second.

“It was just to open up the court a little bit better, to not rush into the shots all the time, find some more width,” Jovic explained.

“So, I tried to do that, and it ended well. So I'm just going to try to keep listening to Novak.”

You always think about those moments where you're going to meet your idols a little bit, and I think sometimes for certain people it can be a little bit deflating if they are maybe not as nice or as open as you anticipated...I think he's almost even kinder and even more attentive outside the cameras than what he's portrayed! Iva Jovic on meeting idol Novak Djokovic

The teenager, who attracted a substantial gaggle of Serbian reporters and ended her press conference by taking questions in Serbian, was building towards a big result like this for several months. She won her first WTA 500 title in Guadalajara in September and kicking off the 2026 season with a runner-up finish at the Hobart International. She’s yet to drop a set in Melbourne, but even if she’s earned it, there’s still something surreal about getting advice from your idol.

“It's pretty insane,” admitted Jovic, who is closing in on a Top 20 debut. “You always think about those moments where you're going to meet your idols a little bit, and I think sometimes for certain people it can be a little bit deflating if they are maybe not as nice or as open as you anticipated.  I think that happens a lot of times where you kind of see, ‘Oh, wow, that's definitely not how it looks like on TV.’ I think he's almost even kinder and even more attentive outside the cameras than what he's portrayed!

“I mean, he's so intelligent and smart and really wants to help the younger generation. So, I'm really grateful to have that advice. Hopefully I'll speak with him more.”

On an early idol trajectory of her own, Jovic will play former world No. 20 Yulia Putintseva for the chance to reach a first Grand Slam quarterfinal—another potential goal achieved by the youngster so early into the new season.

“You never know how the year is going to start,” Jovic admitted. “Obviously I had my hopes to start well and win a lot of matches, but you just never know when everything is going to click. It's really nice to be getting good results this early in the season, and hopefully I can keep going and winning some more.”

And perhaps Djokovic will be watching.