Cojones, apparently
Rennae Stubbs does not hand that word out lightly. She used it twice about Iva Jovic, and everything around it pointed the same way.
The former doubles world No 1, who has coached Serena Williams, spent a stretch of her podcast on the 18-year-old American who ended Alex Eala’s US Open. Her verdict travelled well beyond that one match.
“This kid is special. I think she is going to win a major in the next 12 to 18 months because I think she has the chutzpah,” Stubbs said. That is a firm timeline to hang on a player who only turned 18 and sits 16th in the world.
Try it for $0.99.
What has changed in the game
Stubbs was specific about the improvements rather than vague about the potential. “Her groundstrokes have improved so much, her forehand has improved so much, it was her weaker shot. She rips that thing and hits it down the line really well when she’s confident.”
The serve got the bluntest review. Stubbs said it was poor two years ago, when Jovic was 16, and now carries real pop. The backhand she rates as already excellent, and she noted the American’s willingness to move forward when the point asks for it.
None of that is quite why she made the prediction. “But her guts in the third set,” Stubbs said, describing a teenager shouting encouragement at herself while a break down in the decider. “She was not going away physically, mentally and emotionally. She was letting Eala know, I am not going away either, friend.”
Eala got the harder review
Eala went to New York on the best run of her career. The Filipina won Washington and produced eye-catching performances at Wimbledon, in Canada and at Cincinnati, and she sits 18th in the world. Stubbs still thought she started the match badly, describing her as a deer in the headlights early on, and framed the loss as a learning curve rather than a verdict.
This is not the first time Stubbs has placed someone ahead of Eala in the queue. She previously argued that Victoria Mboko was more likely to win a major than the 21-year-old.
The two are close friends, which Stubbs pointed out did not show for a second on court. “They were going at it, they were pushing each other, there was no mercy, they were hanging in there.” Jovic’s own run ended shortly afterwards, in straight sets against Coco Gauff. Stubbs is betting the ending matters less than what came before it.
Discover the rest of our Tennis news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply