Danielle Collins ‘very emotional’ after winning the biggest title of her career
Danielle Collins has claimed her first WTA 1000 title at the Miami Open, after beating Elena Rybakina in straight sets in the final.
Collins beat the fourth seed, 7-5 6-3, with Rybakina losing in the final in Miami for a second consecutive year.
The Floridian spoke about how it felt to win the title in her home state, “To come out here and feel like I’m playing in front of thousands of my best friends and everybody that was pushing me to get over this hurdle today, it just meant the world.
“I was getting very emotional and I had to keep telling myself, ‘Leave those emotions in the locker room and wait until after the match.’ It was just an incredible environment, I’ve never experienced anything like it.”
Collins announced back in January that she would be retiring later this year, and has now revealed that winning a WTA 1000 title was one of her remaining goals.
“I have always wanted to win every tournament that I have signed up for, but I do think that because it is my last year I really wanted to try to win a Masters 1000 this year,” explained Collins.
She continued, “That’s really important to me. That’s something that I talked a lot about with everybody close to me. I wanted to make a push to be able to bring out my best tennis.
“I’m so glad that I have been able to figure out some of the physical things I have needed to do to kind of peak at the right time and to feel like I’m ready to go. I certainly did that this tournament, but it has been a goal (to win a WTA 1000). So I got to tick it off the list.”
53 – Danielle Collins has become the lowest ranked (#53) champion at the Miami Open and the third-lowest to secure a title at the Sunshine Double (Indian Wells and Miami). Run.#MiamiOpen | @MiamiOpen @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/2yb1bnUlWy
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) March 30, 2024
Despite winning her biggest title, Collins has confirmed that this will not impact her decision to retire, after revealing in a previous press conference that she is living with a ‘chronic inflammatory disease that affects your ability to get pregnant’.
“No, I’m not,” responded Collins. “I feel like all of these questions are coming from such a good place because I feel like a lot of people would like to continue seeing me play well.
“But like I said, I have some health challenges, and those health challenges, make things for me away from the court a little more difficult. I hope everyone can respect that. It’s a very emotional and personal thing.”
Collins will rise 31 places up the WTA rankings on Monday to world No.22, and is still scheduled to play at the Charleston Open next week.
Inside the baseline…
It was a sensational fortnight from Danielle Collins, who dropped only one set across her seven matches in Miami. It was clear how much this tournament meant to the Floridian, with their just being a sense from around the quarter-final stage that Collins might just go all the way. Although it is Collins’ final year on tour, it is great to see her fulfilling some of that unwritten potential at the biggest events.
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