Danielle Collins is loaded with confidence and belief in what she can accomplish in her final season after following her Miami Open title with the Charleston Open championship on Sunday.
Collins powered past 11th- ranked Daria Kasatkina for a 6-2, 6-1 victory on Sunday, her career-best 13th straight match win as she became the first since Serena Williams in 2013 to follow a hard-court victory at Miami with one on the green clay of Charleston.
And she's open to even more in what is the 30-year- old's final season on tour.
"I'm just trying to keep this train rolling," Collins said after winning her fourth WTA title. "Really be myself out there and not think too much about what's next."
No one's been more dominant the past two weeks than the "Danimal," the nickname she coined when she signed up for Instagram out of college.
She showed that again this week, dropping just one set in six matches-it was a second-set loss to 2023 Charleston winner Ons Jabeur-to lift a second straight trophy."
She led 3-0 in the opening set, where she broke Kasatkina's serve twice as the crowd cheered the American's every move. Collins didn't let up in the second set, taking a 5-0 lead before the Russian held serve. She closed the match with a volley at the net, pumping her fist as her face broke into a smile.
Kasatkina, who is ranked 11th, played with a heavy wrap on her right thigh. She struggled with her serve through- out, regularly putting herself behind. Collins had dealt with painful endometriosis, where tissue in the uterus grows out- side the uterus. It can cause difficulty getting pregnant if not treated and Collins made a life decision to end her career for other goals like having children.
Her recent success has not changed her perspective.or plans for retirement.
"I'm happy that I can show- case my best tennis in these last couple of events, because I think that's the way I want to go out," she said. "I want to go out with my best results. I know everyone has a different way of ending their career, but I want to go out playing my best tennis."
