What happened in Danielle Collins' Australian Open 2R? All you need to know about the American's wild celebration, crowd booing and more

10th seed Danielle Collins survived a spirited challenge from Aussie qualifier Destanee Aiava to beat her 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-2 in the second round of the Australian Open 2025. The entertaining contest was full of twists and turns right from the start, and the crowd was loving every moment of it.

Naturally, with Aiava being from the host country, she drew the loudest cheers from the crowd, who were overjoyed even when Collins made some errors. This didn't sit right with the American, who after battling it out for more than two hours, managed to down her opponent. That's when things took a spicy turn.

Immediately after the umpire announced her as the winner, Collins held her hand to her ear, and kept on saying "How about that?" to the crowd. The boos from the audience grew louder after that, and the 31-year-old started blowing kisses towards them in response.

The on-court interview was equally sassy. The interviewer congratulated Collins on her win, and the crowd tried to drown out her response in a sea of jeers. It only emboldened her even more, and she thanked the crowd for contributing to her vacation fund.

"I was thinking during the match ... as long as I’m out here, I might as well take that big fat check. Coco (Vandeweghe) and I love, we love a good five-star vacation. So part of that check is going to go towards that. So thank you guys, thanks for coming out here and supporting us tonight," - Danielle Collins said.

The interview didn't last too long, and after talking about Collins' next opponent, Madison Keys, it came to an end with her thanking the crowd sarcastically. However, the saga didn't end there, and continued during her post-match conference.

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"The people that don't like you, and the people that hate you, they actually pay your bills" - Danielle Collins on her detractors

Danielle Collins at the Australian Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

After an explosive end to her match, Danielle Collins was quizzed about her tussle with the crowd during her post-match conference. She stated that she enjoyed the experience and wasn't too fazed by the crowd's antics. In fact, it motivates her even more when they're rooting against her.

"I loved it, like you know I've been doing this my whole life and I love playing in a crowd that has energy, regardless of what side they're on. It kind of motivates me even more, so it's kind of a good thing especially when I'm not playing that well," - Collins said.

Collins further added that even if people in the stands are against her, it doesn't matter as in the end they are all helping her fatten her bank balance.

"One of the best thing about being a professional athlete is that the people that don't like you and the people that hate you, they actually pay your bills. It's kind of a cool concept, and obviously my professional career is not going to last forever.

"So I just remind myself every day when I have that kind of stuff like they're paying my bills. Every person that has bought a ticket to come out here and heckle me, or do what they do, like it's all going to the Danielle Collins fund," - Collins said.

Collins is a former Australian Open finalist, and went down to Ashleigh Barty in the 2022 final. As mentioned earlier, she will face her good friend Madison Keys in the third round on Saturday (January 18).