Emma Raducanu has revealed when she first became aware that her opponent was unhappy with the ‘inappropriate behaviour’ of a TV cameraman during their match on Wednesday.
Raducanu was facing the American in Strasbourg ahead of the French Open, which begins this weekend, and took the first set 6-4, but then fell 5-0 behind in the second and called for a medical timeout after experiencing stiffness in her back.
Once she had finished receiving treatment, Raducanu returned to the court and Collins wrapped up the second set 6-1 to force a decider.
The third set was a tense battle, with Collins eventually prevailing 6-3, but the focus averted away from the match when the American accused one particular cameraman of getting so close to the players that it had become ‘wildly inappropriate’.
‘I need to get water,’ the American star pointed out. ‘We’re on a changeover.
‘You don’t need to be that close to me, and you don’t need to be on top of Emma. It’s wildly inappropriate.’
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The third set also saw Collins regularly firing herself up as she looked to get over the finishing line. Speaking after the match, Raducanu insisted she had no issue with Collins’ conduct, and gave her take on the incident involving the cameraman.
‘I mean for me, I don’t mind (her disturbances) at all,’ Raducanu said. ‘It’s competition. We are both trying to fight for each point. I expect it as well from her.
‘Off the court, we are both cool. We can talk and have conversations. But on the court, we are both trying to win. I don’t think that gets to my head, which is a good thing. It can maybe affect other players.
‘I was standing up because I didn’t want to sit down in the third set because of my back. I was standing as it was a bit more comfortable.
‘Then, she came to fill a bottle up and was saying how the cameraman was really close and it felt a bit inappropriate. That’s all she was saying.’
Collins has shown little fear of being an outspoken presence on the tour over the course of her impressive career, with her nickname ‘the Danimal’ offering fans a hint of her at times explosive personality.
At the start of the year, the 31-year-old attracted the ire of fans in Australia by boasting about her ‘big fat cheque’ and slapping her backside after beating home favourite Destanee Aiava in front of a hostile Melbourne crowd at the Australian Open.
Collins was subsequently labelled a ‘brat’ by local news organisations, but doubled down on her comments in a later press conference.
Collins was similarly unapologetic after Wednesday’s victory, as she prepares to do better than her run to the final in France last year.
