On an unpredictable morning in Miami—the kind where bursts of sunshine are followed by heavy downpours—Learner Tien has taken shelter deep inside Hard Rock Stadium. This is the home of the Dolphins, a Formula 1 Grand Prix, and, for now, the Miami Open. Tien, wearing tennis shorts and an oversized white T-shirt that almost swallows his small frame, is eating an omelet from the players’ cafeteria. It looks like someone forgot his spinach. No worries, though—the 20-year-old tennis prodigy, a first-generation American from the calm foothills of Orange County, California, isn’t the type to complain. He eats his breakfast eagerly, without a word.

A few hours later, on the practice courts, Iva Jovic—another child of immigrants from Southern California—is making the most of a break in the rain to prepare for her first-round match at the second leg (after Indian Wells) of the pro tour’s so-called Sunshine Double. Jovic, just 18, has been climbing the WTA’s top 20 after a strong run at the Australian Open, where she became the youngest American to reach the quarterfinals since Venus Williams in 1998. In a sport where young stars are often groomed and trained obsessively from adolescence, sometimes reluctantly, Jovic stands out. She’s the relaxed, well-adjusted daughter of a Serbian father and a Croatian mother, and she didn’t commit to tennis seriously until she was 13, when the pandemic made it more practical than team sports like soccer.

“I didn’t do anything special,” her mother, Jelena, says flatly as we watch Jovic, in a pastel Y-3 two-piece, play a practice set against Victoria Mboko, the 19-year-old rising star from Canada. Jovic’s pure ball-striking ability—Andy Roddick has said she has “power you can’t teach”—shows her natural gifts for timing, precision, and hand-eye coordination. When the rain starts again, I duck under the bleachers with Jelena and her husband, Bojan, thinking Jovic might join us to talk after practice. “Well—I’m sure Iva will want to keep going,” says Bojan, who moved from Belgrade to the US in 2003.

Jovic during the 2025 Cincinnati Open.
Photo: Getty Images

Right now is a particularly strong time for American tennis, with four men and five women in the world’s top 20—and Jovic and Tien are the youngest players to break into this elite group. Spend any time around tennis commentators, and you’ll hear both of them mentioned often as some of the sport’s most promising newcomers. At Indian Wells in March, where Tien reached the quarterfinals before losing to Jannik Sinner, the world number one admitted he was impressed by how quickly Tien has made a name for himself in just one season on the tour. A month earlier, at the Australian Open, world number three Alexander Zverev (one of five top-10 players Tien has beaten) noted Tien’s huge potential and wondered why the mainstream hadn’t caught on yet. “People talk a lot about other players his age, but much less about him,” Zverev said, “when in reality, he’s the one performing at a higher level.”

Tien, however, keeps a healthy distance from the hype. “It’s incredible to hear,” he says of the praise and high expectations coming his way. “But, in my mind, potential doesn’t really mean anything until you fulfill it.” In his first season on tour, Tien tells me, ambition too often hurt his well-being. “I was in Rome, I was in Geneva, I was in Madrid, playing all these amazing tournaments in these great cities,” he says, “and I wasn’t really able to enjoy it, because the losses felt like life or death to me.” He’s since made a conscious effort to handle the pressures of the tour more calmly—though he admits it’s not always easy.Most of those cities remain unexplored. “I just feel like if I’m not playing tennis,” he continues, “I’m wasting part of my life—but I’m going to try to go out and see more of the world.”

Jovic, the youngest player in the WTA’s top 100, has caught the attention of none other than Novak Djokovic, the player she grew up idolizing. “It was a family thing,” she tells me, noting that her parents, like Djokovic, grew up in the chaos of war-torn Serbia. “We’d all sit down and cheer for him, watch all his matches.” Bojan and Jelena, both pharmacists, were tight-lipped about the tough conditions that led them to immigrate to the United States. “But when I got into my teens,” Jovic says, “I started asking more questions. Where did you come from? What was it like? And they just talked about it in a normal way, like, ‘Yeah, we were at home, maybe a bomb’s going to fall, maybe it’s not.'” Jovic pauses, glancing over at her parents chatting with her agents in the hotel lobby. “They didn’t have much, but they worked really hard,” she adds. “So I think that perspective makes me more determined not to waste this opportunity.”

Djokovic, whom Jovic met at Wimbledon last summer, has become something of a big brother figure. He gives her advice on handling the demands of the tour and encourages her to keep a journal, meditate, and develop her mind alongside her tennis. “They text,” says Bojan, smiling. Later, when I ask Jovic about their friendship, her cheeks turn red. “Friendship—that’s a strong word,” she says, careful not to exaggerate her connection to the 24-time Grand Slam champion. “But I reach out to him if I need advice.”

Jovic, it must be said, seems remarkably free from the weight of her success and the pressures of professional tennis. She doesn’t pay much attention to online harassment; she dreams of buying a speedboat and maybe going to law school one day. And now that she’s a real contender for big titles, she speaks with refreshing honesty about the sometimes ruthless nature of the sport’s top ranks. “There’s definitely a hierarchy in tennis,” she says. “When you walk into the locker room the first few times, a lot of people won’t talk to you—’Who is she? What’s she doing here?’ The first six months weren’t easy for me.” But as she’s made a name for herself, the locker room dynamics have eased up.

Tien at this year’s Australian Open.
Photo: Getty Images

For both players, a certain calmness has been an advantage. Watch Tien play for just a few minutes—even deep in the fifth set of a Grand Slam match—and you’ll see him break into a big, boyish grin. “I don’t get too high, I don’t get too low,” he says. “And in tennis, there’s not much you can control when you’re playing against someone else.” It certainly helps to have Michael Chang, one of the sport’s greatest problem-solvers, in Tien’s corner. Chang was just 17 when he shocked then-top-ranked Ivan Lendl at the 1989 French Open, announcing himself as tennis’s next big star. Since becoming Tien’s full-time coach last summer, Chang has found they share a lot in common—from their Asian American backgrounds (Tien’s parents immigrated from Vietnam, Chang’s from Taiwan) and shared Christian faith to their ability to make up for physical limits with smart tactics. Tien is listed at five foot eleven, while Chang is only five foot nine.

“I was never going to overpower people on the court,” Chang tells me, “but I found ways to think through matches, and that’s something Learner does very, very well.” Chang is quick to note that Tien’s first name, inspired by his mother Huyen’s job as a math teacher, is especially fitting given how quickly he learns.He absorbs huge amounts of information. (The learner’s sister, Justice, 24, was named in honor of their father, Khuong, who is a lawyer.) “He’s like a sponge,” Chang adds. “When someone has that kind of drive, it’s just different.”

You could chalk it up to the hard-to-define qualities that set elite athletes apart from the rest of us—or maybe it’s just the Tien family way. “My parents always told me you have to be good at something,” Tien says. “Pick something you really enjoy,” they said, “but don’t settle for being average.”

In this story: hair by Autumn Suna Rich; makeup by Mariana Pineda; manicure by Sherwin Hora; tailoring by Olga Meverden.

Produced by Studio Escamillo.

Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about Next Up Wimbledon Catching Up with Americas Rising Tennis Stars Iva Jovic and Learner Tien

General Definition Questions

Q What is Next Up Wimbledon
A Its a special feature or article that focuses on two young American tennis players Iva Jovic and Learner Tien who are competing at Wimbledon It checks in on how they are doing and their journey as rising stars

Q Who are Iva Jovic and Learner Tien
A They are talented young American tennis players who have been making a name for themselves in junior and professional tournaments They are considered the next generation of US tennis talent

Q Is this a documentary or a written article
A Its likely a feature article video segment or podcast episode produced by a sports media outlet to highlight these players during Wimbledon

Q Why are Iva Jovic and Learner Tien being featured together
A They are both promising American juniors who have similar career trajectories The feature likely aims to showcase the depth of young US talent making a push on the big stage

BeginnerLevel Questions

Q I dont know much about tennis Will I understand this
A Yes The feature is designed for general sports fans It will explain who they are how they got here and what makes them exciting without requiring deep tennis knowledge

Q Are they playing in the main Wimbledon tournament
A Probably not the main draw yet They are likely competing in the junior Wimbledon tournament or possibly in qualifying rounds for the main event The feature catches up on their progress

Q How old are Iva Jovic and Learner Tien
A They are both teenagers Iva Jovic is 16 and Learner Tien is 18 They are considered very young for professional tennis

Q What makes them rising stars
A They have won major junior titles and have shown they can compete against older more experienced players They are on the path to becoming top professionals

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