Jovic moved to tears after beating ‘incredible’ friend Eala in US Open epic

Iva Jovic outlasted the fellow young tennis sensation from the Philippines, Alex Eala, in an epic three-hour showdown.American teen Iva Jovic was moved to tears while talking about her off-court friend and on-court opponent Alex Eala, whom she beat in a three-set thriller to enter the round of 16 at the US Open.Jovic outlasted the fellow young tennis sensation from the Philippines in an epic three-hour showdown on Saturday to book a meeting with fourth-seeded former champion Coco Gauff.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4FIFA’s Infantino avoids questions on his future amid growing uncertaintylist 2 of 4Man Utd in ‘good place’ ahead of Premier League trip to Evertonlist 3 of 4Arsenal boss Arteta relishes Premier League duel with Chelsea’s Alonsolist 4 of 4Fenerbahce’s Greenwood, Guendouzi handed fines and bans after brawl at Lyonend of listThe 14th-seed Jovic won five of the last six games for a 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 triumph over 17th-seed Eala after three hours and three minutes.“That felt like a marathon, and I felt like I lost my sanity five times over to win that match,” Jovic said. “But it’s really worth it for this feeling.”Two of the top rising stars of women’s tennis made their Arthur Ashe Stadium debut a memorable battle that featured 17 service breaks in 33 games.“That match, definitely the way it finished, deserved that court,” Jovic said.“It literally took everything to somehow squeeze my way through that.”When the emerging US tennis star’s win was sealed, her Filipina friend went around the court to congratulate her instead of waiting at the net as players usually do at the end of tennis matches.When Jovic was asked about Eala’s gesture in her post-match news conference, the American was moved to tears and said it showed her friend’s character.“It says a lot about her as a person,” Jovic said while wiping away tears. “I’m gonna start crying, but it says a lot about her as a person to be able to do that after that type of match and still come over to hug me and wish me all the best. And even in the locker room behind closed doors … so that just says a lot about her and her character. Yeah, she’s incredible.”