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American Danielle Collins Taunts Australian Open Crowd After Beating Aussie Opponent

She reminded the crowd that they pay "the Danielle Collins Fund."

Madison Williams

American tennis player Danielle Collins taunts the Australian Open crowd.
American tennis player Danielle Collins taunts the Australian Open crowd. / Robert Prange/Getty Images

The Australian Open crowd really did not like American Danielle Collins during her second round 7–6, 4–6, 6–2 win over the Aussie native Destanee Aiava on Thursday. The crowd heckled Collins throughout the entirety of the match, and even booed her during her post-match comments.

Collins wanted to give the crowd a taste of their own medicine, so she heckled them right back. Right after match point, she immediately put her hand to her ears repeating "How about that?" and even blew kisses to the audience, creating a now-viral image.

Then, the 31-year-old wanted to remind the crowd that by them coming to support her and her opponent, they are helping add to her paycheck.

“I was thinking during the match, I was like, 'Hmm, as long as I’m out here, I might as well take that big fat paycheck,'” Collins said to the crowd. She ended her comments by saying, "Thank you guys, love ya," in a sarcastic tone.

She emphasized this message in her press conference. All the fans who "bought a ticket to come out here and heckle me, it’s all going toward the Danielle Collins Fund," she joked.

“The people that don’t like you, and the people that hate you, they actually pay your bills. Obviously my professional career is not going to last forever,” Collins said.

Collins intended to retire from tennis in 2024, but decided to remain on the tour in '25. Playing in front of a hostile crowd such as this one "motivates her more," she added.

Collins will go on to face fellow American Madison Keys, who's coming off a title at the Adelaide International last weekend, in the third round.

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Madison Williams
MADISON WILLIAMS

Madison Williams is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where she specializes in tennis but covers a wide range of sports from a national perspective. Before joining SI in 2022, Williams worked at The Sporting News. Having graduated from Augustana College, she completed a master’s in sports media at Northwestern University. She is a dog mom and an avid reader.

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