Where others her age on tour may become engrossed in the all-consuming world of transferring teenage promise into a successful career, Kaja Juvan finds perspective.
As a former top junior and a dual Youth Olympic gold medallist, the Slovenian found early on that didn’t necessarily guarantee a smooth transition.
Behind the 19-year-old’s elation at qualifying for her maiden Australian Open main draw on Saturday, there was underlying validation.
MORE: Full women's qualifying results
A decision to skip last year’s US Open to complete her high school studies was worth it after all.
It was a move not taken lightly, having pushed Serena Williams to three sets on Court No.1 in her Wimbledon debut only months earlier.
“I just wanted to finish high school really well, I had a lot of exams, so I took a month off tennis, which is pretty hard at the time because I’d just played Serena,” Juvan said.
“Gosh I had confidence, I wanted to play some tournaments. And it’s been hard ever since, because you’ve got to get back to it.
“I feel like now I’m getting better and better, and I’ve just got to stay patient.”
MORE: The women's singles draw for AO2020
Juvan’s 6-3 6-3 victory over Russian former world No.54 Natalia Vikhlyantseva at Melbourne Park on Saturday set a first-round clash with Dayana Yastremska, a fellow 19-year-old ranked 102 places higher.
The Ukrainian will arrive in red-hot form, having carved a path to her first Premier-level final in Adelaide, with wins over Simona Halep and Aryna Sabalenka.
But Juvan learned a lot from her most recent Grand Slam outing, in that loss to Williams.
And the pressure of finishing high school in the meantime had been lifted.
“I actually did pretty well and I’m pretty happy about it,” Juvan said of her exam results. “I was pretty stressed, because I just wasted a whole month of studying and I was really scared if I did really bad I’d be really mad at myself. But I finished it good and I’m really happy about it.
“Before I played Serena I was really nervous. My first top-70 player experience ever and top-20, and Serena is just Serena … Exams kept on going for like a week and a half, my mind was terrible.
“I think if I had to do that again, I’d pick [facing] Serena again instead of doing exams.”
There was jubilation earlier too for 22-year-old Greet Minnen, who booked her maiden appearance in a Grand Slam main draw with a 6-2 6-1 triumph over Austrian Barbara Haas.
Minnen praised her partner, fellow Belgian and world No.47 Alison Van Uytvanck, who embraced her upon sealing the match.
“She helped me so much through the years and she has so much experience, so without her for sure I couldn’t do it,” Minnen said. “I think she’ll be happy too.”
The 119th-ranked Minnen had teamed with Van Uytvanck to play Grand Slam doubles for the first time at Wimbledon last year, where they reached the second round.
MORE: The women's seeds for AO2020
They will again play doubles at Melbourne Park, but not before Minnen enjoys her first outing in singles at a major against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
“It feels amazing. It’s really a dream come true,” she said. “I’ve worked really hard for this. I’ve played French and Wimbledon last round of qualifying so it feels good to finally have it and finally play main draw.
“You feel like you belong there, but you don’t really prove it yet. So that’s what I felt the last year. I’m just happy that I made it and now I’m just excited for my next match.”
Of the three Russians who began the final day of qualifying on Saturday, only fifth seed Anna Kalinskaya progressed. The 21-year-old was staring down defeat against China’s Wang Xin Yu before surging home 4-6 7-6(2) 6-2.
Kalinskaya’s compatriot, No.3 seed Varvara Gracheva, fell 7-5 6-3 to Swedish former world No.45 Johanna Larsson.
Australian 19-year-old Destanee Aiava raced out of the blocks before German Antonia Lottner won 12 of the last 15 games, sealing a main draw berth with a 6-4 6-2 victory.
Teenagers Leylah Fernandez, of Canada, and Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto will make their Grand Slam main draw debuts after their respective victories, while 18-year-old American Cat McNally will contest just her third major.
Czech 24-year-old Barbora Krejcikova – a winner of the French Open and Wimbledon doubles titles last year – won through to her second Grand Slam singles main draw with a 6-3 6-0 thrashing of Sashia Vickery, while Japan’s Nao Hibino booked her passage with a 6-1 6-2 victory over Lara Arruabarrena.