Iva Jovic received advice from Novak Djokovic just before meeting Jasmine Paolini, and the 18-year-old made sure to "follow" what she was told by the record 24-time Grand Slam champion.
After beating Priscilla Hon in the second round, the rising American star revealed that she used to idolize Djokovic and admitted that she would absolutely love to get a chance to speak with him.
On Friday, Jovic – who rose to a career-high ranking of No. 27 after reaching the Auckland semifinal and finishing as runner-up in Hobart – registered her first top-10 win after beating world No. 8 Jasmine Paolini 6-2 7-6 (3).
Later, the 18-year-old reveals that she actually got a chance to spend some time with Djokovic, who was very willing to give her some advice and tips. The Hobart runner-up also shared exactly what the Serbian tennis icon told her.
Jovic: Djokovic's advice was to open up the court a little better, to not rush into the shots all the time
“He gave me some tips for my game, something I could incorporate into this match. When Novak gives you advice, you follow it. The advice was to open up the court a little bit better, to not rush into the shots all the time, find more width. I tried to do that, and it ended well. So I’m just going to try to keep listening to Novak," the world No. 27 shared after beating Paolini.
In the same press conference, Jovic admitted that she was a bit nervous meeting her idol for the first time. However, after speaking with him, the American realized that the Serb was "even kinder and even more attentive outside the cameras."
Now, Jovic is set for her first Grand Slam round-of-16. There, she will battle against Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva for a place in the Australian Open quarterfinal.
