Student of the Game Melichar  ready for new challenges in 2021

Nicole Melichar is a student of tennis in more ways than one, and the top-ranked American in the WTA doubles rankings is hoping to use what she's learned in the past year to reach new heights in 2021.

The Floridian is coming off of a season that saw her win two titles and reach four finals in all—including a second career Grand Slam doubles final at the US Open—in which she played with three different partners. Reaching the quarterfinals or better in eight of 10 events she played, consistency was a hallmark for Melichar even in an abbreviated 2020, and she credits a routine that she adopted during the tour's COVID-19 hiatus for it.

"During the off-time for COVID, I never stopped practicing. I was practicing two or three days a week because I wanted to, not because I had to, and I was also doing a bunch of other sports," Melichar said, speaking to usta.com last Friday at the end of her two-week quarantine period in Australia.  

"I think, overall, I got fitter with my body and I learned some new skills by doing those other sports. In preseason, I tried to take a similar approach. I was doing some other sports, not practicing every day for a good chunk of it, and then I started focusing my practices more on getting tournament-ready."

While she largely partnered China's Xu Yifan, who's called Julie by her WTA peers, last year to a title in Adelaide and consecutive finals in New York, Melichar also won a clay-court title in Strasbourg, France with Demi Schuurs, and reached the semifinals of the French Open alongside eventual singles champion Iga Swiatek. With Xu not traveling to Europe for the end of the 2020 season, and Schuurs already committed to play in Paris with another partner, Melichar linked up with Swiatek for a one-off partnership at the 11th hour — and was along for the ride as the Polish teenager went on to make history as the first woman from her country to win a Grand Slam.

"It was really exciting. I didn't really know her that well before, and she's a lovely person and great girl," Melichar said. "The day before the singles final, we'd played our semifinal [losing in three sets] and I was still waiting for my COVID test to be cleared before traveling. I didn't time it quite right, so I decided to stay one more day for the final and got to see Iga play Sofia [Kenin]. 

"I was so torn between this partner I've been playing with for two weeks and gotten to know and my fellow American. It was a little heartbreaking for me to decide, so I couldn't cheer! I enjoyed the match and I clapped for good points. I was just hoping for a good match and whoever would win, would win. I just wanted to hug them both afterwards. It was a nice experience to actually see a Grand Slam final live, so I think it was special for me as well."

Finishing her season in Paris, Melichar was faced with the colloquial Sophie's choice between Xu and Schuurs, and elected to move forward in 2021 alongside the Dutchwoman. The two, who have taken to calling themselves Team #DemiNik on social media, are the No.4 seeds in the Australian Open draw, and reached the semifinals at the WTA 500-level tuneup event at Melbourne Park.

"It ended up being a difficult decision to choose who I should play with this year. I felt that, because I'd played with both Julie and Demi and felt good on the court with both of them, the decision almost had to come from me," Melichar said. 

"Even though I had so much success with Julie and I loved playing with her, there was maybe a 1 percent difference where I felt like I could be a better fit with Demi. Julie and I, we called each other and spoke about it. It's a little bit like a break-up, I would say, but it wasn't for any bad reasons or wrong reasons. She and I are still good friends, but sometimes, you have a gut feeling and you need to go with it.

"Demi and I click well. We both like to play very aggressive and we both have good mindsets for doubles — we like to come into the net, put pressure and play quick points. It worked well for us on the clay in Strasbourg, and I think that clay is probably our weakest surface. I took confidence from the fact that we performed well on a surface that isn't as comfortable for us, so we could hopefully have success on the other ones that suit us a little more. I have the bigger serve and she has an unbelievable return. We're both good at the net and we can both play both sides, so if we decide to switch in a match, we have that option. I think we have a lot of good things going for us, and it's a matter of clicking in the right moments and maybe getting a little lucky, too."

While she hones her game on the doubles court, the 27-year-old has also been studying off the court: Melichar is in the final stages of finishing her bachelor's degree in communications from Indiana University East. In partnership with the WTA tour since 2013, players including Venus Williams and Sloane Stephens have also earned college degrees through the online program at IU East. Set to graduate in May, Melichar said that homework was among the activites that kept her busy while she quarantined in Melbourne.

“I had a tough choice between going to college and turning pro, and I decided to turn pro. Education is important to me and my family," she added. "I promised my family that I would try and do university while I was playing tennis and I kept that promise. When you only take a couple of classes at a time, it feels very long. At some points I almost felt like giving up, but I wanted to feel like I finished something and accomplished something, so that kept me going."

With a new partner by her side, a degree in sight and more than a few on-court goals in mind, the 2018 Wimbledon mixed doubles champion certainly has enough to keep her busy as she chases her next milestones.

"I had the goal for 2020 to reach Top 10, but with the limited calendar and the ranking situation that you could only gain points rather than lose them, I think I did a good job of getting to No. 11. I still want to continue towards that goal," she said. "I'd like to be Top 10 this year, especially with the Olympics coming. To play the Olympics for the United States is a dream of mine... that's a big goal that I've really had my heart set on. 

"For Demi and me, we'd love to make the year-end championships. Neither of us have won a Grand Slam in [women's] doubles. I've played two finals and her best result so far is quarterfinals. We definitely want to push each other and, maybe, we can win one."