"Don't care what a guy living in his basement is writing on the internet" - Danielle Collins sends brutally honest message to critics

Danielle Collins walked out of the Australian Open with a bold message to her critics. After her defeat against compatriot Madison Keys in the third round, she laid bare her feelings about the heated-up situation with the Australian crowd.

During her second round match against Destanee Aiava, Collins had to face intense heckling from the crowd. The American didn't back down from responding to the crowd both during and after the match.

On being asked if she was in the mood to make her peace with the Australian crowd, she extended another message to her critics. During her post-match press conference, she mentioned how the hateful comments don't bother her at all.

"I guess that's up to them right? And at the end of the day, whatever happens, happens. I mean, the biggest thing is that, nobody got hurt. Maybe some feelings got hurt or things were taken personally and they probably shouldn't have been taken personally by the crowd but, yeah I just feel like people take life way too seriously sometimes," Danielle Collins said.

She made it clear that fans' heckling or comments on social media are not enough to change her priorities.

"I think in our sport, somebody was telling me that the average age of the fans of tennis is like 65 and I think we need to bring some entertainment to the game. And I think can try to make jokes, laugh. I don't have a big ego. I just honestly don't care what's written about me. I don't care what a guy living in his basement is writing on the internet," she added.

Danielle Collins suffered a 6-4 6-4 defeat to Madison Keys, marking the end of her Australian Open campaign in the third round.

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Danielle Collins did not shy away from taking on Australian Open crowd

2025 Australian Open - Day 7 - Source: Getty

WTA star Danielle Collins wasn't done with her critics even after taking down the home hopeful Destanee Aiava. She became the Australian Open's pantomime villain and was heckled by fans both during her second round and third round matches.

She said after her second round win against Aiava that the fans who were booing her were contributing to the "Danielle Collins fund".

"I might just take that big fat pay cheque, Coco (Gauff) and I love, we love a good five-star vacation. So part of that cheque is going to go towards that. So thank you guys, thanks for coming out here and supporting us tonight," she added.

Although Collins is now out of the competition in Melbourne, she enjoyed a memorable campaign at the Australian Open and will hope to build on that in the coming months.