Melanie Jennings Oudin (born September 23, 1991) is an American former professional tennis player. The former world junior No. 2 was a member of the American Fed Cup team from 2009 to 2011 and the winner of the 2011 US Open mixed-doubles title, with fellow American player Jack Sock.
As a 17-year-old in the middle of 2009, Oudin reached the round of 16 of the Wimbledon Championships, followed by a quarterfinal at the US Open six weeks later. She reached a career-high ranking of world No. 31 in April 2010.
Oudin retired from professional tour on August 18, 2017, citing numerous health issues and injuries.
Oudin, a Marietta, Georgia native, has a twin sister, Katherine, and a younger sister, Christina. Introduced to the sport at the age of seven alongside sister Katherine, Melanie showed early promise. As she continued to improve, her time spent on the court increased as well. In seventh grade, she made the decision to homeschool, giving her more time on the practice courts and an opportunity to play more tournaments. In an article with Atlanta Magazine, Oudin said, "If I was going to homeschool, I was going to try to go pro for sure". While the decision proved to be very beneficial for her career, Oudin admits envying her twin sister's experiences at a regular school. She says her idol is Justine Henin because "she proved you don't have to be tall to win things." Her grandmother inspired her and her sister to play tennis when she gave them racquets and lessons when they were young.
2008–09: Breakthrough on WTA Tour, US Open quarterfinal, and top-50 ranking
Oudin turned professional in February 2008. In April 2008, she received a wildcard at the WTA tournament in Miami where she lost in the first round to Tathiana Garbin, in three sets. In August, Oudin received a wildcard into her first Grand Slam main draw at the US Open. She was defeated by Australian Jessica Moore, 7–6, 7–6.
In October that year, Oudin participated in the Bell Challenge in Quebec City. In the first round, she defeated third seed Sybille Bammer. In the second round, she defeated Olga Puchkova in two sets. Reaching her first WTA quarterfinal, she was defeated by sixth seed Bethanie Mattek.
Oudin began 2009 by qualifying for the main draw of the Australian Open. She was then defeated in the first round by Akgul Amanmuradova, in straight sets.
At Wimbledon, Oudin entered as a qualifier. She defeated No. 29, Sybille Bammer, in three sets in the first round, and Yaroslava Shvedova in three sets in the second. Oudin defeated also world No. 6, Jelena Janković, but lost to Agnieszka Radwańska in the fourth round.
At the US Open, Oudin entered as a wildcard. In her first-round match, she easily defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6–1, 6–2. In the second round, she stunned fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva in her Arthur Ashe Stadium debut. Then in the third round, she defeated a resurgent Maria Sharapova. At 17 years of age, Oudin reached the fourth round of a major event for the second consecutive time. In the fourth round, she played another Russian, 13th-seeded Nadia Petrova. She defeated Petrova to reach the quarterfinals of the event. She became the youngest woman since Serena Williams in 1999 to reach the quarterfinals at the US Open, and the youngest since Sharapova to reach the quarterfinals at a major. Her Cinderella story ended when ninth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki defeated her, 6–2, 6–2. A standing ovation occurred when Oudin was leaving the court. After the US Open, Oudin's ranking rose into the top 50, her first appearance there.
Oudin began new season at the Hobart International where she lost to Sara Errani in the first round. At the Australian Open, she was defeated in the first round by Alla Kudryavtseva.
During the Fed Cup tie versus France, Oudin won both of her rubbers over Pauline Parmentier and Julie Coin. The U.S. team won the tie over France 4–1 to move on to the semifinal round. Oudin reached her first semifinal of a WTA Tour event at the Paris indoor event. She fell in three sets to top seed Elena Dementieva, in a rematch of their 2009 US Open second-round match. Seeded second at the Cellular South Cup, Oudin made it to the quarterfinal round where she lost to qualifier and eventual finalist Sofia Arvidsson. In March, she played at the Indian Wells Open where she was defeated in the first round by Roberta Vinci. At the Miami Open, Oudin lost in the second round to 11th seed Vera Zvonareva. Seeded eighth at Amelia Island, she eliminated in the quarterfinal round by fourth seed Elena Vesnina.
2011: Singles downfall, mixed-doubles Grand Slam title
In January, she obtained an invitation to play at the Hong Kong Tennis Classic with compatriots Venus Williams and John McEnroe. At Hobart, Oudin was defeated in the first round by fifth seed Klára Zakopalová in straight sets. In the first round of the Australian Open, she lost to Zakopalová 1–6, 6–3, 1–6.
In the Fed Cup tie against Belgium, Oudin lost her first rubber to Kim Clijsters, 0–6, 4–6. In her final rubber, she was defeated by Yanina Wickmayer 6–2, 6–0. Belgium reached the semifinals at the Fed Cup defeating the USA 4–1. Oudin got her first win of the year at Paris, where she beat Vera Dushevina in the first round in three sets. In the second round, Oudin lost to eighth seed Dominika Cibulková of Slovakia. Having reached the semifinals the year before, Oudin's ranking dropped from No. 61 to No. 72. Oudin's next tournament was the Memphis South Cup. Seeded third, she won her first-round match against Anastasia Pivovarova 6–4, 6–0. In the second, she faced Evgeniya Rodina, only to lose 1–6, 5–7. Oudin was unable to defend her quarterfinal points from last year and therefore saw her ranking fall from No. 72 to No. 81. At the Mexican Open, she retired from her first-round match against qualifier Lesia Tsurenko. Ranked 82 at the Monterrey Open, Oudin won her first-round match over fellow American Vania King 6–4, 6–1. She was defeated in the second round by second seed and eventual champion, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Ranked 84 at Indian Wells, Oudin won her first-round match over Elena Vesnina. However, she was eliminated in the second round by 23rd seed Yanina Wickmayer. Moving on to Miami, Oudin started the tournament well with a first-round win over Julia Görges but was defeated in the second by 29th seed Daniela Hantuchová, 6–1, 6–3.
Oudin began her clay-court season at Charleston where she lost in the first round to Tamira Paszek. In the 2011 Fed Cup World Group play-offs tie versus Germany, Oudin lost both of her rubbers to Julia Görges and Andrea Petkovic. Germany defeated the USA 5–0. As a result, the U.S. team was out of the World Group for the first time. Ranked 93 at the Morocco Open, Oudin upset third seed Lourdes Domínguez Lino in the first round 4–6, 6–1, 6–2. She reached the quarterfinals when her second round opponent, Polona Hercog, withdrew due to an ankle injury. In the quarterfinals, Oudin lost to eventual champion Alberta Brianti. At the Estoril Open, Oudin lost in the first round to qualifier and fellow American Sloane Stephens, 2–6, 1–6. Competing at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, she lost in the first round to seventh seed Anabel Medina Garrigues in straight sets. Ranked 88 at the French Open, Oudin lost in the first round to fifth seed and defending champion Francesca Schiavone, 2–6, 0–6.
Oudin started her grass-court season at the Nottingham Trophy. Seeded fourth, she lost in the second round to Sloane Stephens. At the Miami Open, a tournament that is not on grass, Oudin was defeated in the first round by Michaëlla Krajicek. Playing at Eastbourne, Oudin lost in the final round of qualifying to Zheng Jie 1–6, 4–6. Ranked 87 at Wimbledon, Oudin was defeated in the first round by 18th seed Ana Ivanovic, 6–0, 6–1.
As the top seed at the Lexington Challenger, Oudin lost in the first round to Chanel Simmonds. Oudin started her US Open Series by competing at the first edition of the Washington Open where she fell in the first round to third seed Tamira Paszek. At the Carlsbad Open, Oudin was crushed in the first round by Elena Baltacha, 6–0, 6–1. Oudin lost in the first round of qualifying at the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Open to fifth seed Bojana Jovanovski (4–6, 2–6) and 15th seed Kateryna Bondarenko (1–6, 4–6). In her next tournament, she received a wildcard entry into the singles main draw at the first edition of the Texas Open. In the first round, she was up against lucky loser Akgul Amanmuradova. Oudin was leading 7–6, 1–0 when her opponent retired due to a lower back injury. In the second round, she lost to qualifier Angelique Kerber, 3–6, 2–6. Ranked 113 at the US Open, Oudin lost in the first round to qualifier Romina Oprandi. However, in mixed doubles, she and Jack Sock captured the title defeating the eighth seeded Argentine pairing of Gisela Dulko and Eduardo Schwank in the final.