Danielle Collins Panics After Australian Open Boss Proposes Best-of-Five Sets for Women

Best-of-five sets for women at the Australian Open? WTA ace Danielle Collins, when she heard this, almost had a heart attack.

And it seems, she is not a fan of this proposal from Australian Open director Craig Tiley, who, like many was in awe of the two men’s semifinals held on Friday last week. Eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz outlasted last year’s runner-up Alexander Zverev in five sets, with the match ending after five hours and 27 minutes- also the longest semifinal in the history of the tournament.

Then came another thriller: between 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner, who was eyeing a three-peat of the Slam. Djokovic snapped his losing streak against the Italian with a five-set win after four hours and nine minutes.

The following day Elena Rybakina took on Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s final. The Kazakh ace, after being down 0-3, won five games in a row and with ace she became a two-time Grand Slam champion.

Tiley wants to make changes to the women’s game, by making them play the best-of-five sets from the quarterfinal onwards. Although WTA players have mixed feelings about playing the best-of-five, television broadcasters maynot like this idea due to scheduling complications.

You can’t replicate that semi-final day. That was amazing. Probably the biggest and best event ever. And then you can’t replicate that final last night on the women’s side. It was unbelievable. One of the things I’ve been saying now is that I think there should be three out of five sets for women. We should look at the last few matches — the quarters and the semis, and the finals — and make the women’s side three out of five.

Craig Tiley told AAP

Collins, who made global headlines due to her infamous celebrations after her second-round win in last year’s Australian Open, took to her Instagram story to react to Tiley’s bold plans.

I feel like I’m about to go into cardiac arrest just thinking about playing three out of five.

Check out her post here:

Collins didn’t play this year’s Major Down Under as she is recovering from a back injury. Last year in the event, she lost to eventual champion Madison Keys in the third round.

Craig Tiley addresses the Coco Gauff racket-smash controversy

When Coco Gauff lost to Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, she broke her racket on her way to the locker room. She did not want to smash in front of the crowd and found a quiet place where she released her frustrations. But the American ace was unaware of the behind-the-scene camera capturing her every moment.

The racket smash became viral, and Gauff later called for more off-camera areas at the venue. Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek also shared Gauff’s opinions. The Pole, who became a “meme” after a clip of her forgetting her credential went viral, said players are treated like zoo animals. Craig Tiley has now addressed the controversy.

We want to listen to the players, we want to really understand what their needs and what their wants are. So that’s the first question we’ll ask; we’ve heard you, and whatever adjustments we need to make, we will make. We’ll continue to review it and make sure that the players are comfortable with it.

Craig Tiley said on Tennis Channel Live

Gauff is a one-time Australian Open semifinalist, reaching the stage in 2024. In the previous two years, she lost in the quarterfinals. Swiatek, a two-time semifinalist at Melbourne Park, lost to Elena Rybakina in the quarterfinals. She was bidding to complete the Career Grand Slam.

Also read: Novak Djokovic Says ‘Legendary’ Carlos Alcaraz ‘Deserves Every Bit of Praise’ After Losing Australian Open Final

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