Who is Destanee Aiava’s longtime tennis coach Nichole Kriz? Everything you need to know about their partnership

After impressing everyone with a straight-sets win in the first round of the 2025 Australian Open, Destanee Aiava is ready for her next encounter. The Samoan-Australian WTA pro won two consecutive qualifiers a week ago en route to the first Major down under. She carried the momentum forward and beat Belgium’s Greet Minnen in the first round of the match, making it a hat trick of wins! World no. 165 has climbed her way up in the tennis world in recent years, thanks to her family. But there is another person who has been with her – a trusted trainer. But do you know who her trainer is?

Destanee Aiava was born to Mark and Rosie Aiava in Melbourne in the year 2000. Her father Mark is a native of New Zealand, born to Samoan parents, while her mother Rosie was born in American Samoa. Mark was originally a powerlifter in his younger days. However, he decided to switch to personal training later. Speaking of Rosie, she has been a professional rugby player for the Australian women’s national rugby team. It was only Rosie who guided Destanee in her childhood to become better at tennis. While her mother was her first trainer, there came a stage where Destanee needed an experienced eye. In the picture comes former Australian WTA pro Nichole Kriz – Aiava’s current coach.

Aiava made her Grand Slam debut under her mother’s tutelage, aged 16, at 2017’s Wimbledon. But immediately after that, Nichole Kriz was brought in to hone her skills. For the uninitiated, Kriz, born in 1983 in Sydney, belongs to a sporting family. Her father, Myke, played ice hockey and soccer for Czechoslovakia. On the other hand, her older sister Michelle has been Australia’s former No.2 skater. So how could Nichole resist becoming an athlete?

Kriz’s love for tennis began while watching her father and mother, Seija, play the sport socially. At the age of six, Kriz took up tennis. And when she turned 15, she was already the no. 1 junior player in Australia who represented the team in New South Wales. As a professional, she managed to reach a career-best ranking of no. 104 in 2007.

In addition to being Aiava’s current coach, she is also the director of the National Tennis Academy in Brisbane. There, she helps oversee the academy’s program to develop emerging, talented players aged between 16 and 23. She was given the role last year. Reflecting on her journey and role, on the eve of International Women’s Day in March 2024, she said: “I really want to make a difference to the athletes and their families with their experiences throughout the journey and work with our team to create a great environment for them,” as reported by Tennis.com last March.

For almost eight years now, Kriz has been with Aiava, training her to become a world-class player. But the role will become more crucial going forward, given that Aiava has an important game coming up. But before that, she revealed what her first-round win at the 2025 Australian Open meant to her.

First round win “makes a world of difference” to Destanee Aiava

Before you come under the light of glory, Destanee Aiava‘s past was surrounded by darker days. For the uninitiated, she once suffered a long mental battle. In fact, she even thought about jumping off a bridge back in 2022, according to multiple reports. Luckily, she was saved after three people managed to drive her home after stopping her. Recalling this moment, she said:I didn’t want to make it to my 22nd birthday.” as reported by the Daily Mail on January 14. As it turns out, her life wasn’t always great in terms of comfort.

After her win in the first round, she talked about how it can help her solve her financial problems going forward. With her win, she is guaranteed to earn at least $200,000. She expressed her feelings and revealed that this amount “makes a world of difference” for her. Especially considering she’s still out of the Top 100. Being a lower-ranked player, it’s been difficult for her to attract big sponsorship deals. Which means her only way to earn a good amount of money is through her appearances in major events.

Adding to her feelings after the win, she said:This means I can bring someone to travel with me this year and I can afford to actually go to all the tournaments I want. It really helps. Financially, tennis is so expensive. I find it difficult to travel on my own”

“The fact that I get my fiancé and hopefully one of my family members to the majors makes a world of difference.” she concluded. As is always the case with a less popular face, she’s now getting a lot of eyeballs. But with the newfound fame comes the pressure to maintain her winning momentum.

On Thursday, Aiava will meet USA’s Danielle Collins in the second round. The world No.11 comfortably beat Ukraine’s Daria Snigur in her Australian Open maiden match on Monday. It will be exciting to see who emerges as the ultimate third round contender on January 16th. Do you think Aiava will make it to the next stage? Let us know in the comments below.