Jim Courier reacts to the fans booing Danielle Collins at the Australian Open.
The 31-year-old became one of the biggest talking points of the tournament’s first week following her attitude towards the crowd when she took on home favourite Destanee Aiava in round three.
Collins subjected to boos from the crowd when she put her hands to her ears, blew more kisses to the crowd, and screamed “how about that?”, after she claimed the victory.
This negative reaction continued into her fourth round match against compatriot Madison Keys, and Collins certainly embraced her role as the pantomime villain.
What did Jim Courier say about the fans booing Danielle Collins at the Australian Open?
Danielle Collins was greeted to boos from the Rod Laver Arena when she entered the court to play Keys.
The negative response continued in the early stages of the contest, and they returned in emphatic fashion when Collins left the court following her 4-6, 4-6 defeat.
Jim Courier shared his thoughts on her crowd reaction which he said he could hear from in the TV studio, illustrating how keen the audience were to let Collins know how they felt about her.
“I was in the TV compound, not on the court, and I could hear the boos wafting out of the stadium. It was something to see,” Courier told Eurosport.
“I think she probably got a bit of joy from it in a way because she does kind of like the combat aspect of it. But I do think she came out of the gates a little slowly and maybe it did rattle her a bit.”
Danielle Collins provides an injury update after losing to Madison Keys at the Australian Open
Collins not only had to deal with the crowd being against her but she also struggled with a knee injury.
It began to bother her in the latter stages of the second set and she took a medical timeout after she lost her serve to go down 3-4.
He knee was strapped up and Collins battled hard but ultimately suffered a straight sets defeat. Post-match, the 10th seed told reporters about her injury and when she knew there was a problem.
“Look, this is my left knee. I’ve had a lot of issues with this knee, especially when I was in college,” Collins said. “I had a meniscus tear. I’ve had a meniscus tear on tour. I’ve had a cartilage tear. I’ve had countless issues with my knee.
“I think it was the second or third point in that game at 3-All, and I went down to hit it, and I hit my knee against the ground when I was trying to get low to the ball. It made a noise. I didn’t really think that much of it, but then my knee started to turn purple.
“I was, like, ‘oh, maybe I should try to get this wrapped before it gets to the point where it’s, like, buckling’. So obviously since it’s a previous issue throughout my career, there’s a little fear there for sure.”
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