Collins slams into Aussie Open semis in her debut

Going into the Australian Open, Danielle Collins was 0-5 at the Grand Slam level and she had never played an Australian Open main-draw match. After squeaking by to score her first-ever major win, over Julia Goerges in the first round, she hasn't looked back. With a 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 victory over world No. 44 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Collins is into the semifinals.

"I think just having faith, believing in what you're doing. I work my butt off," Collins said. "Everybody gets their shot at the pie. Right now I'm certainly getting mine. I'm doing very well. I'm just kind of focused on that."

She's made it look easy. The University of Virginia graduate whipped past Sachia Vickery and No. 19 seed Caroline Garcia in straight sets and beat world No. 2 Angelique Kerber in stunning fashion, 6-0, 6-2. She's also made it look fun, as she let cameras follow her home after her third-round win over Garcia.

It would have been more logical for her major breakthrough to come at the US Open, not just because she's American. Collins won two NCAA singles titles while at UVA, earning US Open wildcards both times. She also won the American Collegiate Invitational in 2016, granting her a US Open qualifying wildcard for 2017. None of her attempts proved fruitful, but undeterred, Collins started finding her game at the pro level almost exactly one year ago—not at the Australian Open, but at the Newport Beach 125K series, which she won. Play in Newport started on Monday, while Collins was preparing for Pavlyuchenkova Down Under.

From there, she took out Madison Keys on her way to the Indian Wells round of 16, before carrying that momentum to Miami where she reached the semifinals with a win over Venus Williams. Her next best week came in San Jose with another semifinal.

All that success saw her finish the year at No. 36. But now everything has gone up another level as she's closing in on the Top 20. Her sense of humor and feisty fighting spirit is along for the ride.

"You haven't seen me at Topgolf or bowling. Even karaoke, I don't have a good voice, but I always try to do the best at whatever I'm doing," Collins said. "If I'm not, I still tell myself I'm the best. You got to believe it, right?"

Along with the likes of Frances Tiafoe, Ashleigh Barty and Stefanos Tsitsipas, Collins has been one of the breakthrough stories of the fortnight—but at 25, she's a little different.

"I think not being a child prodigy, not being a superstar at a young age certainly humbled me, made me in a way work harder for things," Collins said. "I think I was talented and athletic, but maybe not to the level that other players were at, like, 14, 15, 16.

"I wasn't really sure if I could make it playing professional tennis when I was that age. Going to college was really crucial for me and my development."

Collins will take on Petra Kvitova for a spot in the final.

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