MONTPELLIER/WASHINGTON, February 1, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)
Day by day, round by round, life on the tennis court continues to look up for Aleksandar Kovacevic. That’s because it’s been an unbelievable week for the American qualifier from New York at the Open Occitanie in Montpellier – one he won’t soon forget.
The 102nd-ranked Kovacevic, 26, began his journey in southern France as the top seed among 16 players, who began in the qualifying draw last weekend. After securing a berth in the main draw, following a pair of straight-set wins over France’s Robin Bertrand and Pablo Carreño Busta of Spain, the former University of Illinois two-time All-American has strung together a trio of solid wins that has boosted his confidence and enabled fans to see and appreciate his style of play, which includes hitting one-fisted backhands just like one of his heroes, Roger Federer.
“Roger is the reason I have a one-handed backhand,” Kovacevic said during one of his on-court interviews this week in Montpellier. “I’ve watched enough of Federer’s videos. I only wish I could do half of what he can do.”
A backhand beauty down the line
Kovacevic claims a close first set against Bellucci, 7-5@OpenOccitanie | #openoccitanie pic.twitter.com/Z4puzz6k3r
— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 30, 2025
In the main draw, Kovacevic outlasted No. 6 seed David Goffin of Belgium, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, in the first round, and followed it with a straight-set win over No. 98 Mattia Bellucci of Italy. On Friday evening, Kovacevic defeated defending champion and No. 4 seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan, 6-3, 6-2, to advance to a semifinal match-up with World No. 10 and top seed Andrey Rublev of Russia.
“I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Kovacevic admitted after defeating Bublik to set up his semifinal showdown against Rublev. “He’s been in the Top 10 for a long time. It’s an exciting match to be able to play.”
Kovacevic’s triumph over the 39th-ranked Bublik, in which he delivered 37 winners and saved all eight break points he faced, was his first Top-40 win since defeating No. 32 Jordan Thompson of Australia in the first round at Acapulco last February. “It was fun today, especially [playing] with Alexander.”
What a show
Aleksandar Kovacevic upsets top seed and two-time champ Alexander Bublik 6-3 6-2!@OpenOccitanie pic.twitter.com/nnKH1ecTxm
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) January 31, 2025
By working his way through the upper half of this ATP 250 tournament draw, Kovacevic has reached just his second ATP Tour semifinal after streaking into the last four at Seoul as a lucky loser in 2022. He’s also moved up to No. 83 in the PIF ATP Tour Live Rankings and has become just the second American semifinalist in Montpellier tournament history after Maxine Cressy in 2023.
Kovacevic, who started his 2025 season by stringing together five consecutive victories to capture an ATP Challenger Tour title in Oeiras, Portugal in mid-January, broke into the Top 100 a year ago after peaking at No. 101 in April 2023. He achieved a career-high No. 72 last September.
“I’ve played close to [my best] the last couple of matches here,” Kovacevic said during his on-court interview after dethroning Bublik, “and a couple of weeks ago as well in Oeiras. I’ve turned the page a little bit.
“I had a rough end to last year. I started to work really hard during the off-season to turn things around. I’ve started to play more free. Good things are happening.”
Trophy time in Oeiras #ATPChallenger pic.twitter.com/dCRcLPWnnC
— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) January 19, 2025
The 6-foot, 174-pound right-handed Kovacevic, who is fluent in both English and Serbian, was born and raised on the Upper West Side of New York City, the son of a Serbian father and Bosnian mother. He began playing tennis at age 5 in Central Park, tagging along with his parents, who both enjoy playing table tennis.
Kovacevic, whose nickname is “Kova,” turned pro in 2021 following his collegiate success and after obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance at the University of Illinois. While winning five Challenger titles – including four in 2023 – Kovacevic has worked hard to be able to matriculate to the ATP Tour on a regular basis. While he’s just 19-32 at tour-level after defeating Bublik, Kovacevic has played some of his most spectacular – if not consistent – tennis as a pro this week in Montpellier. It’s all happened on an indoor hard-court surface – his favorite kind. He’s been winning aggressively by staying on the front foot of things.
“For me, the game plan is to play as much on the front foot as possible – especially with the indoor conditions,” Kovacevic said, after defeating Bellucci. “Once you’re on the front foot, you’re doing pretty good.”
