By Tracy Zwick
Aleks Kovacevic, who grew up in the West 90s, is through to the second round of doubles at the US Open following an electric match on Saturday in which he and his partner, Mac Kiger of Katonah, New York, beat two Californians – Jenson Brooksby and Marcus Giron, 7-6, 7-5.
The pair will take on the tournament’s third seeds, Marcelo Arévalo of El Salvador and Mate Pavic of Croatia, on Monday. Unlike Kovacevic and Kiger, who are playing together for the first time, Arévalo and Pavic have been teamed up for years, winning multiple titles including the French Open in 2024.
All teams who reach the First Round of the Open in doubles receive $30,000 in prize money per team. That goes up to $50,000 for Round Two. If Kovacevic wins on Monday, his team will earn $80,000, or $40,000 per player.
Kovacevic has become something of a doubles specialist at grand slams, though his ATP doubles ranking (No. 106) pales in comparison to his singles ranking, which has been as high as No. 54 and now sits at No. 84. Kovacevic reached the 2026 Wimbledon semi-finals in doubles earlier this summer with Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis. He previously reached the semi-finals in mixed doubles at the US Open in 2024 with then-16-year-old Tyra Grant.
Kovacevic was defeated in the first round of this year’s men’s singles tournament by Monaco’s Valentin Vacherot. The Monégasque was subsequently sent packing by American Francis Tiafoe in the tournament’s Third Round.
“Kova,” as he’s called by friends, was back at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Queens, where the Open is played, within 48 hours of his First Round loss, and not on the practice courts. He was in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world’s biggest tennis stage and venue for the men’s and women’s finals, hitting with the defending champion and global superstar, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz.
With local fan favorite Michael Zheng, the former Columbia Lions No. 1 and two-time NCAA champion, out of the Open after a grueling third round, five-set loss Saturday night to France’s Arthur Gea, UWSers can focus their support entirely on former neighbor Kovacevic. Though he moved to Florida after attending Beacon High School to concentrate on his tennis training, Kova’s family remains on the UWS and has been by his side at the Open.
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