American Danielle Collins opens up about endometriosis in press conference

Danielle Collins opened up in her post-match press conference about a subject not enough people are talking about.

American Danielle Collins is one of the fiercest competitors on the women’s tennis tour, armed with devastating power that few others possess.

But until recently, she was fighting more than her opponents.

The 30th ranked player in the world, who yesterday secured a quarterfinal spot at the Australian Open with a gruelling 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Belgium’s Elise Mertens, has opened up about a subject that even those in the press pack admit rarely gets talked about.

Collins had surgery last year to treat endometriosis — a painful condition that affects roughly one-in-10 women as tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus grows outside the uterus.

It was so bad that it saw her in agonising pain during tournaments in 2021.

“I feel like before (surgery) and before I was on proper medication, I was always having to adjust my training around my cycle because of how painful my periods were,” the 28-year-old Florida native told reporters in Melbourne.

Danielle Collins of the US reacts while playing against Belgium's Elise Mertens during their women's singles match on day eight of the Australian Open. Picture: Paul Crock / AFP

“And now with things being more consistent, I’m able to kind of train more consistently and not have to have, you know, such drastic changes, especially the week of my cycle.”

Collins, who at one stage last year had to resort to underarm serves because the pain was so severe, said she did not know how her body would respond to the surgery. The results speak for themselves.

“I think any time you’re going to have a surgery like I had, I think any athlete would find it less than ideal and nerve-racking knowing how your body is going to recover after that type of surgery,” she said.

“It’s extremely painful and scary, because there is a lot of important things in life that you learn about during those surgeries.”

A member of the press admitted it was a subject rarely spoken about in professional sports.

“Periods, cycles, hormones, all of that, it’s not something that’s talked about very much, we don’t hear those words much in here,” the reporter said.

Collins said being open about it had allowed others — particularly her peers — to reach out and show their support.

Danielle Collins struggled in 2021 with intense period pain linked to endometriosis. Picture: Martin Keep/AFP

“You know, I had so many other players reach out to me before I had the surgery, during, after,” she recalled.

“And, you know, I think that’s one of the nice things about this sport is I think everyone is very competitive, but I think at the end of the day, I think most of the girls get along with each other really well and are really supportive and very good people.”

She said the surgery had helped her regain confidence on the court. It is showing.

“I just feel, as a person, more consistent on a day-to-day basis, because I’m not having such terrible fluctuations and such, you know, painful, really just awful days around those periods.

Collins next faces France’s Alize Cornet — an opponent who described her as “a lion on the court”.

Cornet told reporters: “I’m intense but Danielle is next level.”

Asked if she took that as a compliment, the American nodded.

“Yeah, I think certainly we are both competitors, and I think that all of us can appreciate each other’s toughness and tenacity and what we do,” Collins said.

“I think we understand each other best, all the players on tour, because we know what everyone is going through, and we all share so many of the same experiences. So, yeah, that was very nice of her to say.”

The niceties will be put aside when the pair face-off on Wednesday for a spot in the final four.