Jovic fights off Kenin to join Keys in Charleston quarterfinals

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Iva Jovic is through to the quarterfinals at Charleston. The tournament debutant in the Lowcountry edged out American compatriot and 2025 finalist Sofia Kenin 7-5, 7-5 in two hours and seven minutes.

Charleston: Scores | Draws | Order of play 

There are now four American players on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz -- Jovic, Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys and McCartney Kessler -- in the last eight in Charleston. Jovic will face Anna Kalinskaya Friday in the quarterfinals.

Despite the straight sets, it was a battle between both Americans as Kenin saved two match points a few games prior down 5-4 in the second set to extend the match. After Jovic held to take a 6-5 lead, noticeable pain in Kenin's right shoulder seemed to affect her, requiring a medical timeout which the American was clearly wincing, but Jovic was unphased by the delay and she closed out the match with her fifth and final break. 

"I think it was a tricky match throughout," Jovic said. "A lot of lines hit from both sides of the court. She had two good serves match point down. I could have connected better with those returns, but it is what it is, and I think after you don't get that game, it's really important to hold serve and just keep yourself in there.

"So I tried to emphasize that 5-5 game and just put all my intensity into it, and yeah, just wait for my moment at 6-5, which happened thankfully."

Otherwise, the match felt routine for Jovic initially. She struck first with a break on Kenin's first service game, amassing a three-game lead at 3-0 and 4-1 in the opening set, though that seemed to be a miniature turning point in the set as Kenin found her way to a 5-4 lead fueled by two breaks. Kenin had a chance to serve for the set, too, but Jovic got those breaks back to close out the set.

In the second, it was Kenin who converted the early break, but Jovic crucially got it back to level at 4-4, heading down to the wire. The 18-year-old Jovic broke Kenin at the most timely moments in the match, one that appeared to frustrate her as she doesn't have the most experience on green clay compared to her fellow players on the tour.

Ultimately, a sense of relief -- reflected in a swing of the racquet in the air with a shout of "C'mon" -- was felt in Jovic after she reached her first quarterfinal since the Australian Open.

Keys returns to Charleston quarters

In her 13th appearance in Charleston, Keys has secured her sixth appearance in the quarterfinals in the Lowcountry. The 2019 champion defeated Anna Bondar 6-2, 7-5, spearheaded by five breaks of the Hungarian's serve. 

Keys pressured immediately, forcing five break point opportunities in the first game alone, capitalizing on the final one that kickstarted a 3-0 lead in the set. The American wouldn't relinquish in the first set, though Bondar settled into the match in a closely-contested second set.

After trading breaks midway through the second set, Keys' fifth and final break in the penultimate game proved to be the difference maker as she served out the match, capped off with a cross-court forehand winner -- one of Keys' specialties -- in the one hour and 46-minute match. 

Keys landed nearly 70% of her first serves, and when she have a second serve, she won about 90% of those points. She'll face 2022 Charleston champion Belinda Bencic with a spot in the semifinals on the line.

"Obviously a tough matchup," Keys said. "We've gone back-and-forth a few times, and I mean she's just so good at taking the ball early, and kind of no matter what surface we're on, she just always kind of plays how she wants to play, and I think that makes her really dangerous.

"It's going to be a tough match and another day where I'm going to have to really just try to make sure that my weapons are working for me."

Bencic concurred, and even said she'd rather face Keys on clay court than hard court because the ball is slightly slower, reducing Keys' power a little bit. They have alternated each of their five meetings -- Keys has the 3-2 lead in the head-to-head over the Swiss -- and Keys won their last meeting at Indian Wells in 2025. 

"Madi is a very tough opponent," Bencic said. "She has a big game. But I'd rather play her here on clay than on hard, let's say. So, yeah, definitely going to watch the match and kind of make a game plan."

More to come