The tennis match between Danielle Collins and Iga Swiatek was a match full of power and persistence. Despite the persistence of both players, the American Danielle Collins was able to defeat the World No. 1 and defending champion Iga Swiatek at the Italian Open in Rome.
“I played Iga so many times. The winning favor is in her favor,” Collins said in the post-match. “When you play that many close matches and play some of your best tennis but lose, you learn a lot. I feel like I applied today.”
In fact, going into the match, Collins had never defeated Swiatek, who tops the WTA rankings and is renowned for her clay-court dominance. Past meetings between the two had been closely fought but always turned Swiatek’s favor—until now.
Collins started firing, employing her aggressive groundstrokes and signature intensity to disrupt Swiatek early. Her first-serve rate remained high throughout the match, enabling her to control rallies and force the normally level-headed Swiatek out of rhythm.
“I knew I had to take it to her,” Collins said. “Iga doesn’t give you much. You have to go out and take it. That was my mindset from the first point.”
Tactical Brilliance Shown by Danielle Collins
The victory is added to an otherwise solid season for Collins, who has repeatedly posted deep runs and marquee wins on the WTA tour so far in 2025.
In what appears to be perhaps her last season on tour, Collins seems to be playing with nothing to lose—and it’s paying off.
With Swiatek now absent from the draw, the field has now been opened, and Collins is very much on a short list for serious contenders of the Rome title.
While the season develops on the dirt leading toward Roland Garros, everyone’s looking to see Collins translate this streak into Paris—and maybe alter even more scripts before her closing curtain call.