Tennis player Daniel Collins, ranked 11th in the world, hilariously provoked an Australian crowd that booed him after his victory at the Australian Open.
Collins had reportedly been aiming to retire after the 2024 season, but in October he decided to continue his WTA career for at least one more season.
The 31-year-old Floridian has already maximized his time with a win over Australia's Destany Aiava in the second round of the Australian Open. As soon as Collins defeated the 24-year-old in three sets, the crowd began to boo loudly.
Collins immediately started saying, “How about that?” and put her hands over her ears to absorb the boos. blowing a kiss to the audience. After shaking hands with her opponent and referee, she blew another kiss to the Australian crowd before heading to the bench.
Shortly after, Collins interviewed reporters on the court and was asked about the roller coaster of a game.
Amid complaints from fans, she said, “During the game, I was thinking, “If I'm going to be here, I might as well take that big salary.'' spoke.
pointing at the crowd Collins, along with teammate and third-placed Coco Gauff, thanked the Australian fans for paying for the trip.
“Coco and I…love a good five-star vacation, so part of that check will go towards that. So, thank you, everyone. Thank you for being here tonight and supporting us. ”
Hannah Peters/Getty Images
“The people who hate you, the people who hate you, are the ones paying your bills.”
Collins then gave another interview with ESPN 2, where a reporter for the network asked him how he turned the match around in the third set.
“It was a tough crowd. I thought if I was going to go out here, I might as well go home with a bigger paycheck. Well, thank you for the payday, Australia,” Collins relented.
Asked whether the crowd helped or hurt her performance, Ms. Collins said it was a “combination of both,” but she didn't know how her haters actually charged her. I explained what I was paying.
“I'm definitely the type of person that needs a little bit of a fire under their butt. And I just feel like, oh, all of this is motivating me to get better. You know what? It's a great feeling as an athlete because the people who hate you and hate you are paying your bills. ”
Collins concluded, “It's really rewarding to be out here. And yeah, I feel like it's been a really great day.”
The American player made headlines in August 2024 when he told Greek player Maria Sakkari:shut up” and “Shut up” during a tournament in Montreal.
Sakkari was accused of rudely hitting the ball into the crowd and received a warning from the on-court judge.
Collins will face world No. 19 Madison Keys in the next round of the Australian Open.
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