Danielle Collins calls out Iga Swiatek for 'insincere' reaction after she withdrew due to injury

USA tennis player Danielle Collins was not happy with the reaction from Polish player Iga Swiatek after she went down with injury Tuesday. Collins withdrew from the Olympic quarterfinals match due to an injured stomach muscle caused by cramping and dehydration.

Cameras captured the moment where she spoke to Swiatek after the match to inform her of the decision. Swiatek appeared confused by the moment, prompting many to wonder what was said during the exchange.

Collins cleared up the matter postgame, explaining her frustrations.

“I told Iga she didn’t have to be insincere about, you know, my injury,” she said. “There’s a lot that happens on camera, and there are a lot of people with a ton of charisma and come out and are one way on camera and another way in the locker room.

“And I just haven’t had the best experience, and I don’t really feel like anybody needs to be insincere. They can be the way that they are. I can accept that, and I don’t need the fakeness.”

pic.twitter.com/vR5Bk80IN5

— Bastien Fachan (@BastienFachan) July 31, 2024

Swiatek was leading 6-2, 1-6, 4-1 when Collins retired from the match after taking a medical timeout then getting another visit from a trainer. Temperatures reached 97 degrees Fahrenheit.

Collins also called out Olympic organizers following the match for not providing insulated water bottles or having enough cold water.

“It’s incredibly disappointing because you work so hard your whole life to make it to the Olympics — and this is my first and my last Olympics — and something like not having adequate water on court, that’s really frustrating and it’s really sad,” Collins said.

There was a tense moment in the match when Collins delivered a serve that when Swiatek was standing at the net. Unable to get out of the way of the shot, Swiatek was hit with the ball and fell to the ground.

Collins went over to check on her, as did the umpire. Swiatek took a few moments to regain her composure before eventually getting up and signaling that she was good to go.

“I could not breathe for a moment. It hurt for a bit,” Swiatek said. “But with the adrenaline that you have on court, you don’t feel as much as you should.”

All in all, it was an intense matchup with an unfortunate ending for Collins, who is set to retire. Swiatek now moves on to face China’s Zheng Qinwen in the semifinals.