Marcelo Melo · Biography

On 15 July 2017, on Wimbledon’s Centre Court, Marcelo Melo and Poland’s Łukasz Kubot needed five sets and a 13-11 decider to beat Oliver Marach and Mate Pavić (5-7, 7-5, 7-6, 3-6, 13-11). It was the Brazilian’s second Grand Slam title. Marcelo Pinheiro Davi de Melo was born on 23 September 1983 in Belo Horizonte. He stands 2.03 metres tall, which earned him the nickname “Girafa”, and he built almost his entire professional career on the doubles circuit.

Early years and first titles

Melo grew up in a tennis family. His older brother, Daniel Melo, also played professionally until retiring in 2006 and later became his coach. Marcelo turned professional in 1998, and over time doubles became his speciality. His first regular partner was fellow Brazilian André Sá. Together they won in Estoril in 2007 and, in 2008, in Costa do Sauípe, Pörtschach and New Haven. That year he also played his first Olympic Games, in Beijing, with Sá alongside him.

With Bruno Soares and Ivan Dodig

In 2010 he teamed up with Bruno Soares, another player from Belo Horizonte, winning in Nice in 2010 and in Santiago and Costa do Sauípe in 2011. The pair reunited for the Davis Cup and for the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympics, reaching the quarter-finals both times. His next long-term partner was Croatia’s Ivan Dodig. With him he reached the 2013 Wimbledon final, lost to Bob and Mike Bryan, and that same year he won his first Masters 1000 title, in Shanghai. In 2014 they also reached the final of the ATP Finals, again beaten by the Bryans.

Roland Garros and world No. 1

The first Grand Slam came at Roland Garros in 2015, where Melo and Dodig beat the Bryans 6-7, 7-6, 7-5 in the final. That autumn he won Shanghai with South Africa’s Raven Klaasen and Paris with Dodig. On 2 November 2015 he became the first Brazilian to reach world No. 1 in doubles. He lost the top spot to Jamie Murray in April 2016, regained it in May and held it until June. That summer, still with Dodig, he added the Masters 1000 titles in Canada and Cincinnati.

The Łukasz Kubot years

The partnership with Kubot produced Melo’s most complete season. In 2017 they won the Masters 1000 events in Miami and Madrid, the Halle tournament, Wimbledon and the Paris Masters. After Paris, in November 2017, Melo returned to No. 1 and stayed there until April 2018. That year they also reached the ATP Finals title match, losing to Henri Kontinen and John Peers. In 2018 they played the US Open final, beaten by Mike Bryan and Jack Sock, and Melo won Shanghai once more. In mixed doubles, his best result had come at Roland Garros in 2009, when he reached the final with American Vania King.

Davis Cup and Olympic Games

Melo has represented Brazil in the Davis Cup since 2008, mostly in the doubles rubber alongside André Sá or Bruno Soares. Besides Beijing 2008, he competed at the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Games, reaching the doubles quarter-finals at both. At Roland Garros in 2023, partnering John Peers, he reached 600 tour-level wins, and that summer in Atlanta he played his 1,000th match on the ATP Tour.

Matos, Fonseca and the Rio Open

In 2024 Melo reached the Monte-Carlo Masters final with Germany’s Alexander Zverev, his first final at that level since 2019. The same year he won Stuttgart with Rafael Matos and finished runner-up in Washington. With Matos he also won the Rio Open in 2025, at his eleventh attempt, becoming the oldest champion in the tournament’s history at 41. The following year he defended the title with João Fonseca: on 22 February 2026 they beat Constantin Frantzen and Robin Haase 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 in the 2026 final.