Danielle Collins did not shy away from her run-in with fans at the Australian Open (Image: X: @TheTennisLetter)
was told “don’t say it” in her press conference after defeating home favourite Destanee Aiava at the .
Aiava was the last remaining hope for the Aussies in the women’s singles draw of their home Grand Slam. While she put up a brilliant fight against 10th seed Collins by forcing a deciding set, she still came away with a 6-7 6-4 2-6 defeat.
The rowdy Melbourne crowd were even more raucous than usual. And Collins embraced her role as the pantomime villain, telling one fan to ‘shut up’, blowing kisses to the stands and slapping her backside as they booed her second-round victory.
In her post-match press conference, 31-year-old Collins insisted the hostility did not affect her one bit. She said: “All I have to say is, good luck p***ing somebody off or getting under the skin of somebody that literally doesn’t give a… can I say it?”
At that point a nervous moderator replied: “Don’t say it.”
Collins broke into laughter before continuing: “I mean, seriously. Good luck trying to get under the skin of somebody that really doesn’t care. Look, Destanee is from here. They really wanted her to win badly.
Danielle Collins played up to the crowd after beating their last hope in the women’s draw (Image: Getty)
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“There were a lot of people who were super-drunk and had a hard time controlling themselves. They were really excited and wanted to continue seeing a good, long, hard match. I’m from a different country. Here, competing against someone that’s from here, I thought it was a pretty cool environment. I mean, it was pretty rowdy. But this girl loves it, so…”
Collins, who reached the final three years ago, will play fellow American Madison Keys in the third round on Saturday after battling past Aiava and dispatching Daria Snigur in her first match.
She may face more backlash next time she takes to the court, having got on the wrong side of those cheering on their Aussie heroes in Melbourne. But Collins claims her massive chunk of prize money – at least £147,000 after making the third round – will ensure she has the last laugh.
“One of the greatest things about being a professional athlete are that the people that don’t like you and that hate you, they actually pay your bills,” said the world No. 11.
“It’s kind of a cool concept and obviously my professional career is not going to last forever and I just remind myself every day when I have that kind of stuff that they’re paying my bills.”