"Danielle Collins may never take responsibility";"Bunch of bullsh*t" - Fans slam American for 'deflecting' from Iga Swiatek handshake controversy

Danielle Collins' long and winding answer to a question concerning tennis handshakes has not gone down well with several fans. The question stemmed from Collins' controversial handshake with Iga Swiatek at the 2025 United Cup, during which she barely made eye contact with the Pole and rolled her eyes in a seemingly dismissive manner before walking away.

Later, the American would fan the flames further by setting a picture of herself rolling her eyes during the awkward handshake as her Instagram profile picture. Recently, Collins was asked about the subject at a pre-tournament press conference ahead of the 2025 Australian Open. The former World No. 7 maintained that it was all about poking fun at herself and not taking herself seriously.

"We all compete hard against each other and give it our all, but I think for the most part, most of us are pretty cool about shaking hands with each other at the end of the day. Look, I'm a human. I have situations I like and situations I don't like, things that happen, right?" Collins said.

"And all these memes keep coming up on my Instagram of my face, my face says it all, but, you know, and so... I'm just somebody that's pretty genuine about what I'm feeling and thinking, and I also laugh at myself too because I know that I can be this way, and I know that it's not always the greatest, but I try to poke fun at myself and not take myself too seriously and I honestly encourage other people to do the same," she added.

Danielle Collins also opined that fans aren't really aware of what goes on behind the scenes and often take things out of context.

"Because at the end of the day, if we can't laugh at ourselves about things and take things lightheartedly, what the heck are we doing? I feel like so much gets taken out of context and fans think that they know players personally. They think that they know the ins and outs of what takes place on a daily basis, but the reality is that they really don't," Collins concluded.

However, most fans on X (formerly Twitter) turned critical of Collins over her answer. Many felt that despite the lengthy answer, the American didn't have anything substantial to say regarding the Iga Swiatek handshake controversy.

"She still thinks that was funny, she may never take any responsibility. Way to go completely to the wrong side of the story," a fan wrote.

"A whole bunch of bs, deflecting, trying to make the behaviour normal and encouraging people to do the same..Tw*t," commented another.

"Bro said a whole bunch of nothing," another chimed in.

Here are some more reactions from fans who were blatantly critical of Danielle Collins' answer.

"Somebody's embarrassed here," wrote one fan.

"I got tired of listening to this, there’s difference between being honest and being mean. You can’t buy yourself class and good manners. It’s about being truthful and respectful. You can’t behave like a brat being rude and then hide behind "I’m just honest” card," another added.

"Yeah but this isn’t about making fun of herself. She knows what she was doing in that handshake, the match hadn’t even started and she hadn’t played Iga since the Olympics," weighed in another.

"This reminds me of Team USA one-sided beef vs Stef. Tiafoe "We were just clowning. He can take it as he takes it. Where I grew up we talk like this." #merican bullying mentality," yet another fan stated.

The Danielle Collins-Iga Swiatek feud started at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with the American giving the Pole an earful after their quarterfinal clash.

Danielle Collins accused Iga Swiatek of insincerity at Paris Olympics 2024; Pole later expressed confusion over American's take

Danielle Collins (L) and Iga Swiatek (R) at the 2024 Paris Olympics (Source: Getty)

In the immediate aftermath of Iga Swiatek's win over Danielle Collins in the 2024 Paris Olympics women's singles quarterfinals, the American was captured chiding the Pole. Swiatek won the match courtesy of a walkover due to Collins retiring with injury. At the time, it wasn't clear what the American had said to the Pole.

Later, at a press conference, Collins revealed that she had a go at Swiatek over what she perceived to be 'insincerity' and 'fakeness' from the Pole. Swiatek too was asked about her thoughts on Collins' revelation. The Pole stated that she did not understand what she had exactly done to irk the American.

Both Danielle Collins and Iga Swiatek are in Melbourne right now for the 2025 Australian Open. Collins, the No. 10 seed in the women's singles draw, is set to start her campaign against Daria Snigur. Meanwhile, Swiatek, the No. 2 seed, is slated to face Katerina Siniakova.