No 1 Club
Kovacevic reveals McEnroe reminiscence: ‘One of the cooler experiences of my life’
Kovacevic set to face one other ATP No. 1 Club member, Djokovic, at Indian Wells
March 09, 2026
ATP Tour & Sam Hodde/Getty Images
Aleksandar Kovacevic as soon as acquired a scholarship to John McEnroe’s eponymous academy.
By Andrew Eichenholz
Aleksandar Kovacevic will step into Stadium 1 Monday at the BNP Paribas Open to face a participant he has regarded as much as all through his life: Novak Djokovic. When he was seven, the American was courtside to observe the Serbian play Gael Monfils at the US Open, and would even snag a photograph with the future No. 1 participant in the PIF ATP Rankings.
The pair clashed for the first time of their Lexus ATP Head2Headvert sequence at Roland Garros in 2023, however their assembly at Flushing Meadows in 2005 stays a seminal second in Kovacevic’s tennis journey. Djokovic is just not the solely legend the New York native interacted with at a younger age, although.
Aleksandar Kovacevic first noticed Novak Djokovic play in 2005 and met the Serbian in 2021.” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2023/05/26/21/58/kovacevic-djokovic-roland-garros-2023-(1).jpg”>
Kovacevic was one of the first children to obtain a scholarship at the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, positioned on Randall’s Island. When ‘Kova’ was 11, he attended a tryout, inspired by coach Gilad Bloom, starting a longtime relationship with the inimitable lefty McEnroe.
At a World GroupTennis match at McEnroe’s eponymous academy in 2010, Kovacevic stepped on courtroom to face the hometown hero. After the 11-year-old received the first level, McEnroe rushed the internet on the second, and Kovacevic ripped a one-handed backhand passing shot for a winner up the line on the second, which was captured in a video that has earned thousands of views since.
“I think that was the first time I met him and I was really little at that point,” Kovacevic mentioned. “I remember the racquet being almost the size of me.”
Kovacevic would transfer elsewhere later in his teenagers to proceed his development, finally taking part in school tennis at the University of Illinois. But he spent his adolescence at McEnroe’s academy.
“It was really cool to see that he was super involved with the kids, even back then,” Kovacevic mentioned. “I really feel that former professionals in any sport — it would not must be tennis essentially — however so much of former legends of sports activities put their names on their academies or their names behind so much of initiatives. That does not imply that they are actually concerned and I really feel it is uncommon to see them fingers on.
“That was the coolest thing for me about John, was that he would go out there and hit with us, be super involved, coached us all the time on court, even though I was nobody. I was a 14-year-old, 15-year-old little junior tennis player.”
One reminiscence of McEnroe stands proud for the American, who has climbed as excessive as World No. 54, and it has nothing to do with tennis.
“I was out of shoes. I didn’t have shoes at the time, and he said, ‘Oh, I’ve got a pair at my house in New York. You come grab them’. I was like, ‘Really?’” Kovacevic recalled. “So I ended up going to his place on 84th Street, and he went into his place. He gave me a pair of shoes, wished me luck. That was one of the cooler experiences of my life.”
It was not simply that McEnroe had given him a pair of footwear, however that such an necessary determine in the historical past of the sport had regarded out for him. Throughout Kovecevic’s time at JMTA, McEnroe typically would soar on courtroom to compete with the juniors.
“He doesn’t want to lose either. Even to the kids, he won’t let them slide,” Kovacevic mentioned. “It was always a good time when he came out, because you can tell as a player when someone’s taking it easy on you and he would never do that.”
There are many individuals who’ve made an impression all through Kovacevic’s journey to the ATP Tour, like Bloom. But McEnroe stays an necessary half of the American’s path and remains to be in contact with the Top-100 participant at present.
“He’s pretty down to earth. It means the most to me when I can see the character of people like that where they don’t become too big for the little guys,” Kovacevic mentioned. “I hope that he’s proud of that. The little kid who he gave a scholarship to a long time ago turned out to be alright at the sport.”
