Iva Jovic explains why it’s so difficult to beat Jessica Pegula ahead of their Charleston Open semi-final

Iva Jovic explains why it’s so difficult to beat Jessica Pegula ahead of their Charleston Open semi-final


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Iva Jovic will play Jessica Pegula for simply the second time after they meet in Charleston.

They performed their first match on the Dubai Tennis Championships earlier this yr, the place Pegula defeated Jovic, 6-4, 6-2.

How do you price Jessica Pegula’s possibilities of ever profitable a Grand Slam?

Jovic, 18, will probably be hoping for a greater final result in Charleston, however is greater than conscious of the duty at hand.

Iva Jovic says Jessica Pegula makes you ‘actually work for it’

During her quarter-final post-match press convention, Jovic was requested for her ideas on Pegula.

“I think he’s obviously one of the best players in the world right now, and consistently for the past years,” she stated.

“She’s very solid, doesn’t give away a lot, and places her serve very well.

Jessica Pegula’s serving stats (2026)

“You really have to beat her, she’s not going to have one of those days where, ‘Oh, I’m not playing so well…’

Jessica Pegula in action at the 2026 Charleston Open
Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

“She showed this week that even if she goes down, or if you’re having a hot start, she’s going to come back and she’s going to make you really work for it.

Jessica Pegula at the Charleston Open

matchOpponentScorematch time
Quarter-finalDiana Shnaider3-6, 6-3, 6-22 hours, 10 minutes
Third roundElisabetta Cocciaretto1-6, 6-1, 7-62 hours, 5 minutes
Second roundYulia Putintseva4-6, 6-4, 7-53 hours, 10 minutes
Jessica Pegula at the Charleston Open

“No one has been able to shut the door on her… Yet.

“It’s not enough to get up, go ahead, and she’s going to go away, no, you really have to go out there and beat her.

“So it will be tough.”

Pegula was simply as complimentary in the direction of Jovic when requested concerning the teen throughout her newest press convention.

“Iva [Jovic]I haven’t played her on clay, but just played her in Dubai; she’s playing great tennis,” she stated.

Jessica Pegula vs Iva Jovic – Match stats (Dubai)

StatsJessica PegulaIva Jovic
Aces53
Double faults11
1st Serve %98%98%
Win % on 1st Serve77%59%
Breakpoints3/80/1
Points received6146
Jessica Pegula vs Iva Jovic – Match stats (Dubai)

“Super tough competitor, very focused, works really hard, doesn’t have a ton of holes in her game.

“I feel like she’s just an overall, really solid player.

Iva Jovic pictured at the 2026 Charleston Open
Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

“I think she’s been playing at a really high level this whole year, and yeah, it will be tricky playing her on clay.

“It’s always different from playing on a really fast hard court in Dubai, so we will see how that varies.”

It stays to be seen who will emerge victorious, however you actually will not need to miss their second profession assembly.

Pegula and Jovic will battle it out for a spot within the Charleston Open closing on Saturday, March 4.

What’s on the road for Jessica Pegula and Iva Jovic?

A spot within the closing, of course, however that is not all that is up for grabs.

If Pegula can beat Jovic, she’s going to maintain on to the world quantity 5 spot, ahead of her fellow American Amanda Anisimova.

Defending 500 factors from her title win final yr, Pegula has briefly dropped behind Anisimova within the ‘Live WTA Rankings’, however will transfer again ahead if she reaches the ultimate.

Live WTA high 10

RankYamnationPointsPoints with subsequent win
1Aryna SabalenkaBelarus11,025
2Elena RybakinaKazakhstan8,108
3Coco GauffUSA7,278
4Iga SwiatekPoland7,263
5Amanda AnisimovaUSA5,995
6Jessica PegulaUSA5,9386,068
7Elina SvitolinaUkraine3,965
8Jasmine PaoliniItaly3,907
9Victoria MbokoCanada3,531
10Mirra AndreevaRussia3,121
Live WTA Rankings

Jovic, too, can transfer up the rankings with a win.

She at present sits sixteenth, however can bounce ahead of Naomi Osaka into fifteenth and keep at bay the problem of Madison Keys if she beats Pegula.

Live WTA Rankings (11-20)

RankYamnationPointsPoints with subsequent win
11Belinda BencicSwitzerland3,090
12Karolina MuchovaCzechia2,993
13Ekaterina AlexandrovaRussia2,886
14Linda NoskovaCzechia2,801
15Naomi OsakaJapan2,324
16Iva JovicUSA2,2702,400
17Madison KeysUSA2,1612,291
18Clara TausonDenmark2,040
19Diana ShnaiderRussia2,001
20Elise MertensBelgium1,906
Live WTA Rankings

Jovic has by no means been ranked inside the highest 15.

Will that change this week? Only time will inform…

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