Every year, the Australian Open has its signature moment that really sets the tournament on fire.
After a relatively tepid start to this year’s tournament – at least by its own high standards – the Australian Open came to life on the fifth day thanks to the American Danielle Collins.
Global superstars have graced Melbourne Park for decades and decades, but none of them have lured the locals into the stands like a low-ranking Australian underdog.
On Thursday night, Collins found herself engaged in a fierce fight not only against Australian world number 195 Destanee Aiava, but also against a raucous home crowd baying for the blood of a top-seeded player.
What happened throughout the match, and then immediately after match point, stirred up all kinds of emotions.
Collins, who had been visibly annoyed by the pro-Aiava crowd throughout the match, taunted them mercilessly. This was something you were more likely to see at Wrestlemania rather than a Grand Slam tournament.
Tennis purists were sickened by the whole thing, both by fans applauding Collins’ poor serves and by Collins telling them to call it quits after his victory.
Australian fans have turned on Collins, who is perhaps the greatest pantomime villain the sport has to offer.
Here’s the problem if you’re considering dying on either of these hills: tennis actually needs both rowdy fans and pantomime villains.
If you’ve followed Collins’ career, the fact that she’s the player in the middle of this firestorm shouldn’t come as the slightest surprise.
The 31-year-old is the classic brash American who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and will fight with anyone at any time if she feels like it.
Collins had an icy handshake with Polish star Iga Świątek after they met at last year’s Olympics. (Getty Images: Tnani Badreddine)
The way Collins works, everyone is fair game when it comes to trash talk. It doesn’t matter if you’re a random Australian punter or a five-time Grand Slam champion like Iga Świątekliterally no one is spared.
Just 24 hours after Collins told the Australian crowd to hold on, the man who has won at Melbourne Park more than anyone in Australian Open history, also fought fire with fire.
Tomáš Macháč fought valiantly against Novak Djokovic at the Rod Laver Arena, but Djokovic’s biggest opposition proved to be rowdy hecklers in the stands.
Although Djokovic was visibly fired up throughout the contest and afterward, he was also understanding of the entire theater while admitting that “a few people” in the stands had crossed the mark.
“I understand you have a few more drinks and then you go for it,” he told reporters at Melbourne Park.
“But, you know, on the pitch it’s frustrating, and it comes at the wrong time. If it’s repetitive, it goes on for an hour, someone in the corner says things to you that you don’t want to hear and constantly provokes you, then of course you get to the point where you just respond.
“I tried to tolerate it, but at some point I had to react, and that’s it. That’s all to say.”
Collins may have all of Australia against her, but it appears she has the 10-time Australian Open champion in her corner.
“I loved her answer. I loved, everything she said on the court, off the court,” Djokovic said.
“After this, I’m a big fan of Danielle Collins. I used to be, but now, a big fan. I love it.
“I’ve heard comments from people saying she shouldn’t have said this or that.
“I think she handled the situation very well. I don’t think I would be that polite, and I know exactly that feeling.
“So I think she was funny, smart and just a big fan of what she did. A big fan.”
Collins’ response to the crowd may not have had the decorum of the classics of yesteryear, but you can bet his next match will be one of the most watched of the entire tournament.
Collins will face compatriot Madison Keys, who will be supported by the Australian public as if she resided in Oakleigh rather than Orlando. This can only be considered a major victory for the sport.
Nothing gets the heart racing like a battle between “good” and “evil”. It’s the unique basis for some of the highest-grossing films of all time. Sports is no different.
Novak Djokovic was left extremely frustrated by the crowd during his clash against Tomáš Macháč. (Reuters: Edgar Su)
Some of the most memorable competitions took place between players willing to wear the villain’s black hat and the traditional crowd favorite.
Djokovic masterfully played the role of villain when he began disrupting tennis’ status quo, that of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal trading each Grand Slam title in the early 2010s.
He’s been around long enough to finally transition from villain to hero, another character arc that people love to see.
If other sports around the world benefit from players willing to play the role of villains, why should tennis be any different?
“We have a history and a tradition that we are proud of and that makes our sport different from other sports,” Djokovic explained when asked if tennis should be less valuable in player-fan interactions.
“At the same time, I think we have been a little behind other sports in terms of changes and trying to keep pace with the evolution of society and the new generation who we all know doesn’t have a great attention span and wants movement.“
Collins, like Djokovic, embraced her with the crowd.
“I loved it. I’ve been doing this all my life. I like playing in a crowd that has energy, no matter what side they’re on,” she said after the victory against Aiava.
“I’m someone too, it motivates me even more. So it’s a good thing, especially when I’m not playing very well.
“So, I think that really helped me in the end. It just helped me focus more and challenged me at times. Just, yeah, it kind of pushed me over the finish line.
“I think there were a lot of people who were very drunk and having trouble controlling themselves and who were really excited. I also think they wanted to continue to see a good, long, hard match.
“I’m from another country, I’m here competing against someone who’s from here.
“It turned out to be a pretty cool environment, I thought. Even though it was pretty loud, this girl loves it.”
It’s a fine line for sports administrators to walk. Fans pay a lot of money to come see players like Djokovic perform on Center Court, and don’t necessarily want to be told how and when to applaud. On the other hand, paying money doesn’t suddenly mean you have the right to abuse players for hours.
However, the fact that the fans are loud and boisterous often increases not only the atmosphere in the arena, but also the level of competition between the players, who suddenly feel excited.
Sit inside John Cain Arena for a Kyrgios match, then inside any other Melbourne Park court and you’ll notice a drop in the excitement level.
Serbian fans filled Rod Laver Arena to watch Novak Djokovic in action on Friday night. (Getty Images: Cameron Spencer)
As long as they are not disruptive or abusive, fans should be encouraged to create chaos in the stands.
While it is imperative to get new fans into the sport, tennis is one of those sports where tradition is still very much present.
Djokovic suggested he would even be a fan of NBA-style cheerleaders dancing between sets, provided it didn’t happen at Wimbledon.
We’re probably decades away from having cheerleaders, DJs, T-shirts and more in the middle of Grand Slam tennis matches.
But in the meantime, some playful banter between fans and players can serve as a bridge that will allow tennis to reach more eyeballs in the years to come.
