Can Melanie Keep It Up in 2010?

Her name made international headlines when she played at last year's US Open, but can 18-year-old American tennis star Melanie Oudin do it again this year? That will be the question on everyone's lips when the first Grand Slam of the season begins in Melbourne.

If you passed Oudin on the street, she might just look like your average teenager at 5'6" and 130 pounds, but behind the Goldilocks hair and Colgate smile is one fierce competitor on the court. Having only turned professional in February 2008, Oudin battled her way into the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour's Top 100 after Wimbledon last summer, where she beat former No.1 Jelena Jankovic. This marked the first time Oudin reached the fourth round at a Grand Slam event, but it wouldn't be the last.

A few months later, the 17-year-old, who began playing tennis at the age of 7, would win the hearts of millions of tennis fans with her spectacular performance at the US Open. With the word 'BELIEVE' inscribed on the heels of her pink and yellow shoes, Oudin did just that: "For me, it's all about that," she said in the Times. "It's believing that I can beat these girls." And the crowd did too. She came from behind to beat Elena Dementieva, making it her second victory over a Top 10 player. With the support of the crowd, there was no looking back. She continued her remarkable run by ousting Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova, before falling to eventual finalist Caroline Wozniacki.

After her stint in Flushing Meadows, Oudin jumped from No.70 to No.44, and became the youngest quarterfinalist at the US Open since Serena Williams did so over a decade ago. In late September last year, Oudin set a career-high of No.42, ending the season at No.49. The Georgia native is now the third-highest-ranked American tennis player, behind only the Williams sisters.

Despite Oudin's dominance at the US Open, the rest of 2009 wasn't exactly smooth sailing. She pulled out of the Bell Challenge in Quebec City with a thigh injury in late September. In Tokyo, she lost in qualifying to veteran player Jill Craybas, and made an even earlier exit to 140th-ranked American player Alexa Gatch at the China Open in Beijing.

With a new year comes a new season and once again all eyes will be on Oudin as she faces her next big test since the US Open. Last year, Oudin lost in the first round of the Australian Open, 61 64. Oudin proved that 'impossible is nothing' when she took on the Russian tennis giants, but this year, the Belgian powerhouses are back. Oudin just might get the chance to come face to face with Kim Clijsters or with her idol, Justine Henin. In March Oudin will make her way back on home soil when she competes for $4.5 million in prize money at Indian Wells and Miami. There's no telling if Oudin can repeat her 2009 Cinderella feat, but she'll definitely be a crowd favorite.