Who is Iva Jovic? Alex Eala's first-round opponent at the 2026 French Open

Alexandra “Alex” Eala will face American teenager Iva Jovic to open her 2026 French Open campaign on Tuesday.

Jovic, 18, is currently ranked No. 17 in the Women’s Tennis Association rankings and reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open earlier this year.

The match will mark the first singles meeting between Eala and Jovic.

READ MORE | Alex Eala at the 2026 French Open: Schedule and draw

The two previously teamed up in doubles at the ASB Classic earlier this year, where they reached the semifinals. They also played together at Indian Wells, where they fell to Jelena Ostapenko and Hailey Baptiste in the Round of 32.

Jovic is coming off a Round of 16 exit at the Strasbourg Open, where she lost to Emma Navarro, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.

Last year, Jovic reached the second round of the Australian Open, French Open, and US Open, while bowing out in the first round of Wimbledon.

Eala, meanwhile, enters the tournament ranked world No. 37 after recently suffering a first-round exit to Oleksandra Oliynykova in Strasbourg, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.

Check out her season recap here:

Season recap

Clay-court swing

• Italian Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 32
• Madrid Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Stuttgart Open (WTA 500) — Round of 32
• Linz Open (WTA 500) — Round of 16

Sunshine Swing

• Miami Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16
• Indian Wells Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16

Middle East Swing

• Dubai Tennis Championships (WTA 1000) — Quarterfinals
• Qatar Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Abu Dhabi Open (WTA 500) — Quarterfinals

Philippine Women’s Open (WTA 125) — Quarterfinals

Australian Swing

• Australian Open (Grand Slam) — Round of 128
• ASB Classic (WTA 250) — Semifinals

—JKC, GMA News