Miami champ Danielle Collins maintains dominant streak, blitzes Paula Badosa in Charleston

Danielle Collins won an eighth straight match on Tuesday, dismissing Paula Badosa, 6-1, 6-4 to advance at the Credit One Charleston Open.

"I wasn't going to miss this tournament in my last season," Collins said on court. "It's a really special place and everything this tournament does for women's tennis is really special, as is the support we get from the community here."

The Miami Open champion made an effortless transition from hard courts to clay as she eased past the former world No. 2, booking an intriguing second-round clash with defending champion Ons Jabeur after 81 minutes on Credit One Stadium court.

"Sunday, I did the five-hour drive back to my home town. I got to sleep in my bed for a night, and then I flew here yesterday," Collins explained. "I had one hit on the clay at home, so I'm just getting the clay under my feet now and just trying to adjust as much as possible. It's a little bit of a different game style coming out here; you have to be versatile and flexible. In certain parts of the match, I was, and I'm just looking to get better with each match."

Collins’ final season on tour hit new heights over the weekend at the Hard Rock Stadium, where she captured her first WTA 1000 title in her career over 2023 finalist Elena Rybakina, and continued her packed schedule with a trip to Charleston for the Hologic WTA Tour’s biggest North American clay-court event.

The unseeded American drew a sizeable challenge in Badosa, a former semifinalist in Charleston who has dealt with a persistent back injury for much of the last two years. Still, the Spaniard expressed optimism for her health after playing good friend Aryna Sabalenka in Miami.

Badosa ultimately proved no match for the inspired Collins, who has repeatedly affirmed her plans to retire at the end of the year after initially making the announcement following a heartbreaking loss to Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open.

Barreling through a 29-minute first set, Collins struck a whopping 12 winners to just four unforced errors, breaking the Badosa serve three times to take the early advantage.

That lead persisted in the second as the 30-year-old American rolled through the first three games to earn a double-break lead.

Badosa clawed one break back to get on the board, but Collins stayed the course, fending off a late surge from the Spaniard to hold on for a 5-3 lead. Weathering an emotional delay caused by a fainting lines official, Collins won her 16th straight set behind a pair of big serves—ending with an impressive 28 winners to just 15 unforced errors.

"Everything that happens on the court, my heart broke in half. I almost started crying!" Collins said of the lines official. "To reset and come back and close out the match against a tough opponent isn't easy. Most importantly, it looks like [the official] is going to be ok."

Up next for Collins is defending Charleston champ Ons Jabeur, who has struggled to find a rhythm in 2024 and is on a four-match losing streak dating back to the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open in early February.

"Ons and I have had some great memories on and off the court. I took in the New Year with her last year with her and her husband, so that was pretty fun. She'll definitely be the fan favorite," she said to vocal disagreement from the Charleston crowd. "Coming out here and having such great support for all of the athletes, this is all of our favorite event. We always look forward to coming here.

"But everyone loves Ons and she has a huge fan base. There's no denying that, so it's going to be a tough match. We've played some incredible battles and I'm obviously familiar with her game. I'll have to recover, prepare, and get myself ready."

Collins won their most recent match at the 2022 Miami Open in straight sets, and also defeated the two-time Wimbledon finalist en route to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at 2020 Roland Garros.