"This is my last year, and some of my final events; I want to remember these moments" - Danielle Collins on her mentality during Miami Open triumph

Danielle Collins opened up about her mindset during her victorious 2024 Miami Open campaign.

Collins defeated fourth seed Elena Rybakina 7-5, 6-3 in just over two hours to win the Miami Open, which is the biggest title of her career so far. With this win, she became the first American woman to win the WTA 1000 event since Sloane Stephens in 2018.

Speaking in her post-match press conference after beating Rybakina, Danielle Collins, who had previously announced her retirement this year, shared her journey leading up to the final.

Collins expressed that coming into the match, she wanted to to savor the special moments of bonding with her team and relishing the unique atmosphere of playing in her home state of Florida. The American also revealed that she wanted to take in these moments and not focus on anything else.

"When I walked in today, I immediately had, like, a few cameramen on me and we were having some great moments with my team. I said, you know, these are some, like, really special moments. I don't want to be so focused on everything else where I don't get to kind of take it in," Danielle Collins said.

Reflecting on her Miami Open title victory, the former World No. 7 attributed her win to her strong mentality. Knowing that this would be her "last year," "last season," and some of her "final events," Collins approached each match with a determination to enjoy every moment and create lasting memories.

"I really think, like, part of the reason why I played so well and did a good job today was because I had that mentality of, like, I'm going to enjoy every minute of this. This is my last year, this is my last season, and these are some of my final events. I want to remember these moments," she added.

Danielle Collins: "This day has been, like, the best"

Danielle Collins at the 2024 Miami Open

During the aforementioned press conference, Danielle Collins stated that coming into the Miami Open final was exciting for her because she was excited to play in front of her home stated with a lot of crowd support. She described the day as one of the "best" in her career.

"I feel like today I woke up and when we were in the car, I was, like, oh, this is going to be the first time I play a finals in my home state and have a lot of crowd support. This is so exciting. We changed the playlist, got really pumped up. It was just so much fun. This day has been, like, the best," Danielle Collins said.

Collins also mentioned that this being her final year on the WTA Tour, she has been participating in consecutive tournaments. Therefore, she was looking forward to some well-deserved downtime with her family and friends and savour her title win.

"I've been going, going, going for the past few months playing back-to-back tournaments. Now I get to celebrate with friends. Yeah, I've got a night out on the town. Haven't done that in a while. Hopefully I can stay up for it (Laughter.) And wear a nontennis outfit. I'm so excited," she added.

The American's Miami Open triumph takes her win-loss record for the 2024 season to 15-7.