Danielle Collins entered Wimbledon on a wave of resurgence after briefly flirting with retirement. The former world No. 7 really found her groove during the grass-court season, putting on some impressive shows at Queen’s and other lead-up events. Collins, with her mental toughness and intensity on the court, has used her experience to make a strong comeback on Grand Slam stages, ready to show that she still fits in with the best in the game.

That backdrop really set the scene for a tense meeting with world No. 4 Iga Swiatek. During their match on Centre Court, Collins made a certain mistake while serving: after a let, she replayed a second serve, not realizing that Wimbledon has a clear rule against it.

When she realized her mistake, she did something somewhat unusual in today’s tennis world: she took a moment to pause the match, walked over to the umpire and Swiatek, and offered a heartfelt apology.

According to a report by Express, “Sorry, Iga!” shouted the American tennis star, issuing an apology to her Polish competitor. This apology showed just how much Collins values fairness, even in the middle of a tough rivalry. Collins and Swiatek have had a bit of a bumpy relationship. The American tennis star called out Swiatek for being insincere after a cold handshake during the Paris Olympics quarter-final and the United Cup, hinting that Swiatek was putting on a false facade.

“There’s a lot that happens on camera, and there are a lot of people with a ton of charisma and come out and are one way on camera and another way in the locker room,” Collins said back then. “I just haven’t had the best experience, and I don’t really feel like anybody needs to be insincere. They can be the way that they are. I can accept that, and I don’t need the fakeness.”

So, this particular moment of regret really changed the vibe of the match at Wimbledon. Instead of taking advantage of the situation, Collins pointed out her mistake, showing her sportsmanship. Because of this particular rivalry that they have, their Wimbledon game has always been anticipated.

There’s always some tension between Danielle Collins and Iga Swiatek

There have been whispers of gamesmanship surrounding Iga Swiatek in the past, but Danielle Collins’s recent remarks probably put a serious dent in any chance of them keeping things professional on the tour. Collins has definitely tried to reach out and make amends.

In a January interview with CANAL+, reflecting on the incident at the Paris Olympics, she explained, “These things happen sometimes on the court and I was in a lot of physical pain during that time of the match and feel uncomfortable with her reaction. Hopefully, we can move on from it & be good competitors & good people.”

Furthermore, Collins opened up about her own mistakes, sharing, “I’m trying to be the best person I can be and I fall short of that sometimes and people make mistakes.” Their 2025 Wimbledon meeting was their 10th time facing off, and a tennis fan could really feel the excitement from the community for this match at one of tennis’ most prestigious events.