Australian Open villain Danielle Collins booed by crowd in loss

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  • Matt Walsh, ESPN Assistant EditorJanuary 18, 2025, 6:11 a.m. ET

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      Matt Walsh is a Melbourne-based sports journalist who willingly travels far and wide to watch any sport. Not only has he watched the NFL in Dallas, soccer in London, baseball in Arlington and hockey in Boston, he has covered F1, AFL, Wimbledon and the Australian Open for a variety of media outlets.

MELBOURNE, Australia – Tennis’s newest villain Danielle Collins has been booed and jeered by the Australian Open crowd during her third-round 6-4, 6-4 loss to fellow American Madison Keys on Saturday night.

Collins made headlines in Australia after her second round match – a hard-fought three-set victory over local hope Destanee Aiava. The American, who was ravaged during the encounter, returned serve to the hostile Australian crowd after winning the match by kissing them, telling them to make more noise and even slapping her backside in the direction of the crowd.

She then inflamed further tensions when she took the microphone during her post-match press conference.

“You know, I thought during the game, I thought, ‘Hmm, if I’m out here, I might as well take the big fat paycheck,'” Collins said.

“(My friend Coco Vandeweghe) and I love, we love a good five-star vacation, so part of that check goes to that, so thanks guys, thanks for coming out and supporting us tonight.”

As Collins and Keys walked into Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night, there was a bit of booing around the stadium, with Collins gesturing to the crowd to bring it on.

Later, when the tournament MC introduced the players on the court, Collins received another round of boos, matched by some enthusiastic cheers, but the incident went up a notch when the match started, with no. The 10 seed’s first serve — a mistake — is met with derision.

In the same service game, Collins hit a double fault – it was met with cheers and laughter from the predominantly Australian crowd. In contrast, Keys’ first double fault of the match was met with mostly silence.

A later Collins error was commented on by a member of the crowd, “Ha, try again!” causes the chair umpire to warn guests not to shout between first and second serves.

The pantomime villain started slowly under the lights; Broken in the first game of the first set, Collins was never able to claw back the momentum, Keys winning the set 6-4.

The start of the second set was a complete contrast to the first; Collins started hitting her groundstrokes and broke in the second game, consolidating to a 3-0 lead, but Keys managed to settle and level the match by breaking back not long after.

The 10th-seeded Collins appeared to be struggling with a knee injury. During the sixth game at 3-3, she approached the chair umpire and requested a medical time-out before giving up a crucial break in which Keys took a lead she would not relinquish at 4-3.

The crowd, strong for Keys, roared enthusiastically when the 19th seed converted on match point and again booed and jeered Collins – the runner-up here in 2022 against Ashleigh Barty – as she left the arena.

Speaking to the press after the loss, Collins said she expected a hostile reception from the crowd, adding that she “enjoys” energetic crowds when she plays.

“I expected it, of course. It’s fine. Like I said, I really enjoy playing in that kind of environment. It’s what you work so hard for your whole life as a kid. I embraced it,” she said.

“Yeah, I thought overall it was good. It got me fired up at times. It got us into the game and got us both focused.”

Asked if she will be able to get back on good terms with the Australian crowds going forward, Collins was cautious about her week Down Under and the attention she has received.

“At the end of the day, whatever happens happens. The biggest thing is that nobody got hurt. Maybe some feelings were hurt or things were taken personally and probably shouldn’t have been taken personally by the crowd,” she said.

“But, yeah, I feel like people take life too seriously sometimes. I think in our sport, it’s like someone told me that the average age of people who watch and are fans of tennis is 65 .I think, you know, we have to bring some entertainment to the game. I think we can try to make jokes and laugh.

“I don’t have a big ego when it comes to this. Honestly, I don’t care what’s written about me. I don’t care what a guy living in his basement writes on the Internet. You know what I mean? I’m just trying to have fun.”