The Australian Open was still in session when its breakout local star, Daria Gavrilova, briefly resumed what she calls her "normal life". Still without a driver's licence, she went back to catching trams around her adopted home town, and occasionally collected her housemate's son from primary school, where her newly recognisable presence did not go unnoticed.
"They kind of just said: 'Well done on Oz Open' and I think they all enjoyed watching me," said Gavrilova, who became the tournament's darling en route to a turbulent fourth-round loss on Rod Laver Arena. "I got a few compliments, 'we're so happy that you're here and representing Australia', so it was really nice." 
Yet what came next was not all about adoring crowds requesting hugs and selfies, prime-time stadium courts and beaming post-match interviews, as Gavrilova discovered soon enough. Jumping off the tram and back onto the WTA circuit for back-to-back tournaments in Dubai and Doha, the world No.33 won just one match between heavy losses to Ana Ivanovic and then Caroline Wozniacki.
Just as she was emotionally fried during her Melbourne Park meltdown when a debut grand slam quarter-final beckoned after a 6-0 first set against 10th seed Carla Suarez Navarro, Gavrilova admits she struggled initially to adjust to life-after-  January, when a glorious Hopman Cup partnership with Nick Kyrgios was the attention-grabbing entree.
"I think in the Middle East I was kind of feeling 'oh, it's completely different', and maybe I wasn't too ready to play there," says Dasha, as she is known. "I was still a bit exhausted, and I think I was still back in Australia, to be honest. I was in the Middle East, but my head was back in Melbourne.
"But I learnt from that, I guess. Everything is still new for me. Last year I almost lost first round at every grand slam and I would say that's because I was unexperienced and I treated grand slams differently, I was freaking out thinking, 'oh they're the biggest tournaments of your life, you'd better do well'. So right now for the next few years I think I will still learn a lot - a lot about myself, and about players and, I guess, the tour."
Having split with travelling co-coach Craig Tyzzer in favour of as much time as possible with long-time mentor Nicole Pratt, the now 39th-ranked Gavrilova took more positives away from the recent US hardcourt swing.
More happily, it was also in Miami where, after a practice session with Pratt, she learnt via the International Tennis Federation website of her successful appeal to be permitted to represent Australia in the Fed Cup, starting with this weekend's world group play-off tie against the US in Brisbane. The ITF board exempted Russian-born Gavrilova from a rule change requiring players to have been local citizens for two years in order to play in Fed Cup or Olympic competition, on the basis that her application - approved last   December - was already in train, and that, unlike Ajla Tomljanovic, for example, she had not previously played for her birth country.
Australia's 50th Fed Cup player delivered the traditional "rookie speech" at Thursday's team dinner - joking about Molik's casual invitation for a weekend away in Brisbane, giving heartfelt thanks to Pratt and conditioning guru Stefano Barsacchi, and declaring her decision to emigrate was the best she has made - before Friday's draw pitted her first-up against US No. 1 Madison Keys on Pat Rafter Arena.
Gavrilova expects to be nervous before her maiden appearance, but is sure to be proud, and will certainly be vocal having learnt the national anthem when she decided to make Australia home. So to the next chapter in the engaging story of a player who was barely known here a year ago, but whose wild ride through   January and beyond was not confined to the No. 12 tram.