Melanie Oudin, who recently won the USTA Roland Garros wild card by winning the most points in two out of the last three USTA Challengers, says that a coaching change was key to getting her out of a slump that saw her suffer 13 first-round losses in 2011 and five straight at the start of 2012. The 20-year-old split with her longtime coach Brian de Villers in September and eventually moved to New York to work with USTA coaches at the USTA Training Center—East at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
"After the year I had last year, I decided that probably it would be smart to make a change," she said. "I really didn't know what I was going to do exactly. But I think I needed to make some kind of change. It was definitely a little bit scary because Brian is the only coach I've ever really known. I'd been with him since I was nine years old. It definitely was a big change. Wasn't really sure what to expect. Then starting with the USTA in Boca Raton, it was really nice. I think it was a good change for me. It was definitely a fresh start. I felt a lot better about everything. I think I definitely found the place I should be training at."