DANIMAL ATTACK: Rarely has one word so aptly described a WTA player. Time and again, Danielle Collins is said to be feisty. No kidding.
The unvarnished American individualist celebrates the ethos, “I am woman – hear me roar!” “Go for it!” is her mantra.
After beating the Aussie local darling Destanee Aiava in Melbourne, she ditched the idea of doing the usual boring post-match interview. Aryna Sabalenka almost always tells the crowd, “Thanks guys, I couldn’t have done it without you.” And every year Rafa told crowds in a half dozen or so tennis stadiums all over the world, “This is my favorite place to play.”
But the Danimal was having none of that. Forget that they call the AO the Happy Slam. She taunted the throng that had been taunting her, saying, “Every person that bought a ticket to come heckle me, it’s all going towards the Danielle Collins Fund. Bring it on!”
She added: “I figured I’m out here anyway, why not collect a big fat paycheck? Coco [Vandeweghe] and I love going on five-star vacations, so you bet I’m going to take that check and go to a five-star resort with my girlfriends. Probably the Bahamas. We like boats. Big boats. We like yachts.”
As she returned to her courtside seat, the crowd was in a “How dare you?” tizzy. Danielle didn’t care. She leaned over, tapped her rear and effectively told the Aussies to kiss her ass.
Then again, last year, broadcaster Chris Bowers had warned us, “I don’t think you want to get on her wrong side.”
Collins later suggested that the best thing about being a professional athlete is that the people that hate you pay the bills.
A while ago she stated the obvious: “I wear my heart on my sleeve. I’m someone who’s not afraid to be myself. I think as women we should really embrace that, support each other and be able to use that passion to fire us up. We get framed as emotional and frustrated…I just say, ‘F–k it!’ I’m going for it!”
Collins is a lightning rod. Some thought her behavior was over the top. Danielle was the only player who Ash Barty criticized in her book. But Coco Gauff was supportive, saying, “She’s a nice person. I always say Danielle is going to be Danielle. There’s no one changing her. She doesn’t care, either. That’s something I can respect – when someone knows who they are.”
Jessica Pegula sounded a similar tone: “Tennis can be kind of stuffy, and so I think to have that mentality that she has [is good].”
Novak Djokovic. who has had countless run-ins with fans, including at Wimbledon and last year’s Australian Open, backed Collins. “I loved her response – I loved it,” he confided. “Everything she said on the court, off the court. Big fan of Danielle Collins after that. I was before – but now?! Big fan! I love it…I heard some comments of people that she shouldn’t have said that. I think she handled it really well. I don’t think I would be that polite, and I know exactly the feeling. So I think she was funny – smart!”
THE MATCH THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING: Early on at this year’s Aussie Open, there were few high-interest, high-drama battles – until Learner Tien shocked Daniil Medvedev. Unfortunately for American audiences, like many a previous Down Under tennis drama, it was mostly held in the middle of the night and not that many Americans saw it.
DON’T TRUST ANYBODY OVER 20: After young wannabes impacted the Aussie Open and ousted all three of the top men’s seeds, Jon Wertheim tweeted, “You know who’s having a great tournament? @atptour NextGen….Fast Learner Tien, Michelsen, Fils, Mensik, Basavareddy, and, of course, Fonseca. Each has left a heel print on the event. Give the winner a wild card next year.”
BTW: Italian Lorenzo Sonego beat 39-year-old Stan Wawrinka in the first round and 18-year old Joao Fonseca in the second round.
THE HYPE MACHINE TAKES A HIT: The 18-year-old sensation Joao Fonseca has already been making some significant waves. He was the US Open Junior champion and the No. 1 junior in the world, and in December he won the Next Gen tourney. Still, it was a shock when the Brazilian went 9-0 this year without losing a set and then dismissed Andrey Rublev in the first round.
It was as if white lightning had hit tennis. The hype machine went bananas. We were assured that Joao would join Guga Kuerten, Gaston Gaudio, and Juan Martin del Potro to become the fourth South American to win a Slam, that he’d soon ease his way into the top five and would rival Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
Then the uber-enthusiasts had to hit the brakes. Joao lost to the No. 55 Italian Lorenzo Sonego.
HOW ‘BOUT DEM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIANS? Southern California is not only the home of America’s best player, world No. 4 Taylor Fritz, it also can boast the phenom of the year, Learner Tien, as well as the 20-year-old sensation Alex Michelsen, the considerable Brandon Nakashima and the solid veteran Marcos Giron.
TRENDING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION: This week the 39-year Gael Monfils, who’s ranked 41, continued his winning ways. So his ranking will now be lower than his age.
JUST WONDERING: Is Venus Williams, who hasn’t played since the Miami Open last March, pulling off the most low-profile retirement in tennis history?
GO FIGURE: Paul Annacone said that Gael Monfils was the most athletic tennis player he’s ever seen…Coco Gauff, the star of the United Cup, hasn’t lost a set in any of her eight of her matches this year. Going back to November, she’s won 26 sets and lost only one.
HAIR HEADLINES: Now that we’ve gotten over the trauma of Taylor Fritz briefly becoming a blonde, we can note that Amanda Anisimova has become a brunette, Daniil Medvedev’s hairline is beginning to vanish, and Coco Gauff plays with one serious ponytail. Many have been said to be redheads – Rod Laver, Boris Becker, Jim Courier, Mark Woodforde and Andrey Rublev – but Jannik Sinner is the real deal. Casper Ruud all but insisted that Andrey Rublev cut his long, wild hair – but the Russian adamantly refused.
FAMILY MATTERS: Daniil Medvedev welcomed his second daughter. Aussie Ash Barty is pregnant with her second child. Her countryman Alex De Minaur and Brit Katie Boulter are engaged. De Minaur is into the third round and Boulter lost in the second round to Veronika Kudermetova. Naomi Osaka and her rapper partner Cordae have separated. The husband and wife duo of Gael Monfils and Elina Svitlona are into the third round. The Russian sisters Mirra and Erika Andreeva both won a round, with Mirra into the Round of 16. Sisters Veronika and Polina Kudermetova were in the main draw, with Veronika into the third round and Polina losing in the first round. Belinda Bencic prevailed in the Battle of the Mothers, beating Naomi Osaka.
REVELATION ON THE HAPPY SLAM: Brad Gilbert revealed that Melbourne, the home of the Happy Slam, has no such thing as America’s Happy Hour, with its reduced pricing.
NOTHING SHOCKS US NOW: The defiant rebel anthem, “We Built This City on Rock and Roll,” by San Francisco’s Jefferson Starship, is now being used to sell toilet paper.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
“Honestly, I was playing and thinking, ‘Wow, girl, you are really tough!’” – Aryna Sabalenka, after a tough win over Clara Tauson
STANFORD – ONE SHINING MOMENT: Stanford had two players in the Australian Open draw – Tristan Boyer and Nishesh Basavareddy. But the highlight of the tournament for the university may have come when Pat McEnroe provided a particularly nuanced explanation of an obscure rule, and his brother and fellow Stanford product John concluded, “That’s a good Stanford education for you.”
ONLY TENNIS: Brett Haber asked what other sport is played at 2:54 AM in the morning. “It’s more proof why tennis is weird and beautiful and the most challenging sport on this Earth.”
RUSSIAN WOUNDS: Russia’s three top stars, Andrey Rublev, Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov lost to emerging stars who are 18, 19 and 20: Joao Fonesca, Learner Tien and Alex Michelson. But Russians Mirra Andreeva, Dasha Kasatkina and Veronika Kudermetova are still alive.
