'They're paying my bills.' Hating Danielle Collins has become Australia's new sport.

"Childish mentality, disguised as badassery."

This is just one of the many comments condemning American tennis star Danielle Collins following her defeat of Australian player Destanee Aiava at the Australian Open — with many spectators accusing her of being unsportsmanlike.

As local fans were being vocal in their support for Aiava throughout the game, Collins eventually told the crowd to "shut up" during the second set.

Watch: Aryna Sabalenka and Lena Rybakina practising before the 2025 Australian Open. Post continues below.

And while she didn't win any favour with those in the stands, Collins did end up winning the match.

She celebrated her victory by cupping her ear to the crowd and repeatedly saying, "How about that?" before kissing her hand and slapping her backside.

The boos only intensified during the tennis player's post-match interview, prompting Collins to pause mid-question and laugh, before grabbing the microphone.

"I was thinking during the match, if I'm out here, I might as well take that big fat pay cheque and go on a holiday," Collins said, her comments competing with the crowd's increasing volume.

"Coco [Vandeweghe] and I love a good five-star vacation, taking a holiday," she added, referring to her friend and former tennis star. "Part of that cheque is going to go to that."

And when Collins left the court and began her post-match press conference, she doubled down.

"One of the greatest things about being a professional athlete is the people that don't like you and the people that hate you, they actually pay your bills," she said, when asked about the heckling.

"It's kind of a cool concept. Obviously, my professional career is not going to last forever, so I just remind myself every day when I have that kind of stuff, they're paying my bills… it's all going towards the Danielle Collins fund."

By reaching round three in the Australian Open, the 10th seed has made at least $290,000 already.

"Me and my group of girlfriends, we love a five-star vacation, so I can guarantee you that cheque is gonna go towards our next five-star trip, hopefully to the Bahamas.

"We like boats, we like big boats, we like yachts. So yeah, we'll post about it and let you guys know how it goes."

The tennis player also said that she loves a crowd with "energy", even one that is against her.

"It kind of just motivates me even more, so it's kind of a good thing, especially when I'm not playing that well.

"I think it really helped me in the end [to] concentrate more and challenged me at times [and] pushed me kind of through the finish line."

When asked why she thought the crowd was so vocal, Collins suggested it was a mixture of fans wanting their own player to win, and fans who were "super drunk" and had trouble controlling themselves.

Either way, though, she wasn't fussed.

"Good luck trying to get under the skin of someone who really doesn't care," she added.

The comments didn't go down well with tennis fans, many of whom accused Collins of being tactless and calling her out for poor sportsmanship.

"Bragging about her money in the interview is one of the most cringe things I have seen in tennis," one user wrote on Reddit.

"Meanwhile, her countryman and teammate Taylor Fritz said he'd donate his match payment to the LA fires," another replied.

"You would think after winning a tightly contested match, you would be more interested in your own performance instead of trash-talking the crowd," a third wrote.

Some, however, defended the professional athlete, saying she was "having some fun" and joking around.

Others suggested her comments were tame compared to some of the male players, including Russian Daniil Medvedev, who appeared to give the crowd a middle finger during a match.

"Meddy did the exact same thing... In fact, he literally showed you the middle finger... On camera… he was lauded for it," one user wrote.

Collins was also later asked about the timing of a medical timeout for a foot problem. Play was halted for nine minutes late in the second set when Collins was trailing 5-2.

While some suggested the timeout was merely to throw Aiava off her game, the American defended the decision, saying she did not "need to play head games", given the level at which she plays tennis.

"I felt like it did help me in the end because I did start serving quite a bit better after that," the athlete said.

"I feel like I kind of adjusted and started going back to what I do with my feet on my serve a little bit better, and got some momentum on the serve. I was pushing out of the corners and running down a few more balls there in the end, so it was helpful."

Collins also praised Aiava's game, saying she is "obviously very talented".

"[She] was doing a lot of things too well at times, so I just had to try to hang in there and do everything that I can."

Like her opponent, Aiava was a fan of the "really loud" crowd.

"It was really fun. It kind of sounded like a rugby league match," she said. "But it was very different. I think we could use a little bit more of that in tennis."

Despite the loss, Aiava has been proud of her performance this past week, saying she showed herself that she does "belong here".

"I've known it for quite a while, but actually putting it into action and doing it is completely different. I think I did that this week.

"Hopefully, the rest of the year goes similar. If not, that's okay, too. At least I've had a really good week here. That's all that matters."

Feature Image: Getty.