AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 18, 2025

Danielle Collins

Press Conference

M. KEYS/D. Collins

6-4, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Danielle, tough one. Obviously something going on with your knee. Can you just talk us through your thoughts on the match.

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah. I mean, I actually thought I played pretty well at times. I think it just came down to the serving and the returning. It was almost like a men's match in a lot of ways. You know, we were both having difficulty getting the points started when both of us were serving. Not a lot of rhythm. Then just comes down to the margins.

I think there are a couple of times that I missed by so little, and Maddie made some shots by very little. Yeah, ultimately Maddie just came up with some better shots in the bigger moments.

Yeah, this is tennis.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Can I ask about the crowd? It felt like (indiscernible) from the moment you stepped into the arena.

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah, I expected that obviously. That's fine. Like I said, I really do enjoy playing in these types of environments. It's what you work so hard for your entire life as a kid. I embraced it.

Yeah, I thought overall it was good. It got me fired up at times. It got us into the match and got both of us focused, so yeah.

Q. I was going to ask how the last day or so has been because it feels like a whirlwind of attention.

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah. I mean, obviously I'm towards the end of my career. It's wonderful that I can capitalize on these opportunities. I think that six different sponsorship opportunities come up this tournament alone. That's a great signal for me.

Obviously, like I said, every fan contributes to that. It's been a real blessing.

Q. Trying to harness energy and get back to your playing, a close friend in Maddie. I don't know if there was a lid on your emotions at times.

DANIELLE COLLINS: What do you mean?

Q. Were you more restrained because it's a good friend of yours across the net?

DANIELLE COLLINS: I don't know. I mean, I feel like I approached the match similar to how I played Destanee and matches before. I just go out and compete as hard as I can even if I am playing my friend. We're used to it at this point.

Yeah, I just always try to bring good energy. Yeah, I don't know. I see what you're saying though, for sure.

Q. How is the knee?

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah, I mean, look, this is my left knee. I've had a lot of issues with this knee, especially when I was in college. I had a meniscus tear. I've had a meniscus tear on tour. I've had a cartilage tear. I've had countless issues with my knee.

I think it was the second or third point in that game at 3-All, and I went down to hit it, and I hit my knee against the ground when I was trying to get low to the ball. It made a noise. Didn't really think that much of it, but then my knee started to turn purple. I was, like, Oh, maybe I should try to get this wrapped before it gets to the point where it's, like, buckling.

So obviously since it's a previous issue throughout my career, there's a little fear there for sure.

Q. Did you think about quitting the match?

DANIELLE COLLINS: No, because the doctor said it seemed like it was just swelling from whatever movement I had done. They had kind of checked the different range in motion and made sure that it wasn't something like an ACL tear. We would have known if I would have done something more serious to it, I think.

But obviously if I was to continue playing the match, I kind of needed to get the swelling down, so...

Q. Some players like Medvedev when they have a run-in with a crowd never ever seem to shake it off. So they cop it year after year. Do you think you're doomed with the Aussie crowds, or can you kiss and make up someday down the future?

DANIELLE COLLINS: I mean, yeah, I guess that's up to them, right? At the end of the day whatever happens, happens. The biggest thing is that nobody got hurt. Maybe some feelings got hurt or things were taken personally, and they probably shouldn't have been taken personally by the crowd.

But, yeah, I feel like people take life way too seriously sometimes. I think in our sport, it's like somebody was telling me that the average age of people watching and the fans of tennis is, like, 65. I think, you know, we need to kind of 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, like, what some guy living in his basement is writing on the internet. You know what I mean?

I'm just trying to have fun. I'm just try to enjoy my life and have fun with it. All my friends on tour thought I was -- they knew I was just being me and trying to make humor of the situation.

Then I had a lot of my friends be, like, Well, am I getting invited on the yacht (laughing)? Yeah, a lot of the girls on tour were, like, Well, you're inviting me, right?

That's all that matters. At the end of the day you can't please everybody. The most important thing is your friends and family and what they think.

Yeah, nobody got hurt. That's the main thing. This is sports. I don't think the banter is necessarily a terrible thing. I mean, I don't know.

Q. Novak Djokovic was gushing about you in his press conference. Did you make any other sort of new fans, besides your friends, anyone new that reacted to you, new in the Danielle Collins fan club?

DANIELLE COLLINS: I'm trying to think. I haven't been on social media that much, to be honest. I have a somebody that helps me run my page and everything.

But I love this old guy, Tony Jones. Sorry, everybody in the room that's over, like, 70, sorry (laughing). I just love how he called me a brat. It's just so Gen Z and Millennial right now with Charli XCX. I really want him to do the dance. He has to do it. I really want to get a one-on-one with him, and we got to do the dance, so...

Q. Have you figured out your schedule for the coming months? I know you've had an unplanned part of your career a bit. Have you thought about how full of a schedule you want to play, maybe taking the knee separately?

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah, knee and foot. Yeah, it's like one thing after another. And playing in three different pairs of shoes. I played in a different pair of shoes. I played in K-Swiss the first match, Adidas the second match, another different Adidas model the third match trying to get it right with my foot.

Obviously now dealing with two different things, so have to kind of see. I believe I'm signed up for Doha, Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami, Charleston because I love all of those events.

Yeah, then we'll kind of take it from there. I'm someone that kind of just signs up, too, for everything traditionally in my schedule, and then I have the option to play if I want to play, and if I don't, I can kind of modify things.

But at this point, yeah, I'm just kind of enjoying the ride and seeing what happens. Obviously I still am dealing with health stuff as well, so that's trying to, like, navigate that while I'm on the road and traveling is difficult.

I do have to kind of take some time in my schedule to try to be going to those appointments and figuring things out and, you know, getting second and third opinions and that kind of thing. It all takes time.

I have to kind of just, yeah, play it by ear a little bit. Obviously I've got to, I said I was going to The Bahamas, right?

Q. So that is planned?

DANIELLE COLLINS: I hope so, yeah. A couple of my friends were, like, We can get it booked whenever you want. Just give us 48 hours, and we can get this thing booked.

Yeah, I got to fit that in there for a few days. Yeah, we'll see what happens. I'll keep you guys updated for sure. I will definitely send pictures to everyone.

Q. What will you remember most about this tournament, this 2025 Australian Open for you?

DANIELLE COLLINS: Oh, I mean, I think emotionally this has been so great for me. I feel like if I'm being really honest, in the earlier parts of my career, even though I'm someone that's very competitive and feisty and it appears that I do what I do, right?

I think earlier in my career I was more concerned about what people think. I think I was much more guarded about my personality because, you know, I know I can be fiery, and I know that can rub people the wrong way. I never want to hurt someone's feelings or be disrespectful to someone that I'm competing against, especially the people that I really respect.

I'm not perfect. I'm not a perfect person, but I think I definitely in the past used to think about, Oh, if I do this, like this person might not like me, or if I do that. I don't want to step on anybody's toes or I don't want to, you know, share too much about my life because I don't want to make anybody else feel like, you know, sad about theirs.

I think maybe with age comes this attitude of, like, this is it. We're going to be ourselves. I'm going to accept who I am, and I'm going to just, like, go for it.

I think that's something I'm really proud of myself is I just have gotten to the point where I really don't care anymore about what people who aren't important to me think.

That's been a really big thing, right? I think a lot of people, as they evolve and grow, whether you play professional tennis or not, you kind of go through different challenges. That's one that I feel like I've been able to really lean into and just get comfortable with.

Yeah, I think that's important, right, for our mental health and everything to accept who we are and to just embrace it.

Q. It's a big one.

DANIELLE COLLINS: Yeah.