In the 2024 season, Danielle Collins’ new and fierce avatar surprised everyone. She started her season in January with the intention to retire at the end and start her family. But the American star, at the age of 31, went on to claim 2 titles in a span of weeks. She clinched the Miami Open, followed by the Charleston Open, and eventually broke into the top 10 yet again. When everything seemed to be going according to her plan, Danimal announced the reversal of her retirement decision and entered the Billie Jean King(BJK) Cup to represent the USA. What’s going through Collins’ mind?

BJK Cup was supposed to be the farewell tournament for Danielle Collins. But she reversed her decision. This year has been an emotional rollercoaster for the American star. At the moment, she is dealing with health issues and her plans to start a family with her boyfriend have taken a backseat. Collins received an endometriosis diagnosis before the start of the season. It is a condition in which cells similar to those that line the uterus grow outside the uterus.

However, things spiraled out of control after the US Open. What followed was doctors’ appointments again and again. It has not been easy for Collins. Opening up about her emotional battles, Collins said to the Athletic, on November 14th, “You feel like you’re chasing your tail sometimes with the news that you get from your doctors because it can feel like Groundhog Day.”

Moreover, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Collins has undergone procedures to sort out endometriosis, but she seems to be at her wits’ end, as nothing seems to be working. She further added, “Other times you feel like, ‘Wow, I’ve done treatment, I’ve had surgery. And yet this thing continues to be an issue.’ And you think, ‘How is it like this?’ But that’s the thing with endometriosis. It’s not like a tangible thing that you can just fix and that it can just go away. It doesn’t really go away.”

While the medical experts are helping Danielle Collins with her condition, she is trying to enjoy the silver lining to her retirement reversal. “It’s great that I have my career. And that I have that to kind of fall back on while this next part of my journey in life gets postponed a little bit.” Moreover, the warrior isn’t alone in her journey, be it on the court or off the court. Despite the USA suffering a heartbreak against Slovakia at the BJK Cup, Danimal has the full backing of her captain!

Danielle Collins’ BJK Cup captain extends her support to the warrior, as she struggles to find her form

BJK Cup didn’t turn out the way the Team USA had anticipated, as Slovakia surprised them with a stunning victory. While Taylor Townsend started the match against the European nation with a win, Danielle Collins failed to find her form. Rebecca Sramkova defeated Collins in straight sets, with 6-2,7-5. When the team captain, Lindsay Davenport, was asked about the USA’s performance, she was proud and supportive of her team.

Davenport accepted the result as she praised her team and empathized with their struggles. She said, “Sometimes players are going through a lot off the court. A lot of times people don’t really realize that we see athletes out there kind of competing, but, you know, real life is pretty heavy sometimes.”

Davenport had nothing but praises for the “warrior,” as she further added, “Danielle was doing her absolute best to compete. Sometimes, like, it just gets the best of you in certain situations, and that happens. I thought she did a really, really great job of kind of getting it back together, and like I said, almost kind of flipping that second set. She’s a warrior.”

Collins’ time under the sun will come again, but in the meantime, she has the support of tennis fans and her well-wishers as they welcome back the “warrior” Danimal!