American tennis player reacts to Australian Open fans booing her during match against home favorite

Posted by Admin January 17, 2025 Tennis

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When the crowd booed American tennis player Danielle Collins at the Australian Open, she heckled them right back.

Collins, 31, blew kisses to the jeering crowd as she defeated Australian home favorite Destanee Aiava, 24, at Melbourne Park on Jan. 16.

The tennis star also egged on her detractors by dramatically cupping a hand to her ear.

Danielle Collins gives a cheeky response to the crowd’s boos. Robert Prange / Getty Images

At one point, she shouted right back to the hecklers, grabbing a microphone and calling out, “Thanks, everyone! Thank you guys, love ya!”

Collins shared clips of these moments later in her Instagram story, set to the songs “Look What You Made Me Do” by Taylor Swift and “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion.

With her latest Australian Open victory, Collins advanced to the third round of the Open and will face off against fellow U.S. tennis player Madison Keys on Jan. 18.

After the match, Collins told reporters she loves feeding off the energy of the crowd, “regardless of what side they’re on.”

She said all the booing only made her more determined to win.

“I’m like, ‘Well, If I’m going to be out here for two and a half hours and putting up with all these people, I might as well take the bigger paycheck, right?’” she said. “And I was super happy to do that.

“It’s kind of a cool concept, and obviously my professional career is not going to last forever, so I just remind myself every day when I have that kind of stuff, like, they’re paying my bills,” she also said. “Every person that’s bought a ticket to come out here and heckle me and do what they do, it’s all going towards the Danielle Collins fund, so, yeah, bring it on. I love it.”

Collins earned $290,000 Australian dollars, or just under $180,000 U.S. dollars, for making it to the third round, according to Reuters.

When asked what she planned on doing with her winnings, Collins said the money would go toward a vacation with her friends.

“I can guarantee you that check is going to go towards our next five-star trip, hopefully to the Bahamas,” she said. “We like boats, we like big boats, we like yachts … We’ll post about it and let you guys know how it goes.”

Collins also reflected on why the crowd turned against her in the first place. She said it was understandable because her opponent was a home favorite and people “wanted for her to win badly.”

During the press conference, Collins was also whether she minded playing the “pantomime villain,” to which Collins responded, “Good luck trying to get under the skin of somebody that really doesn’t care.”