Danielle Collins remains untouchable in winning the Charleston Open

Maybe Danielle Collins just needed to relax. The American had won two titles in her career prior to 2024, but after announcing she would retire by the end of 2024, she has played some of the best tennis of her career. This includes winning her last two tournaments, the Masters 1000 Miami Open and the WTA 500 Charleston Open. She defeated Daria Kasatkina in the final in Charleston on Sunday 6-2 6-1.

Like with almost all of her opponents in March and April, Collins simply overpowered the Russian. She held serve with relative ease while Kasatkina had to struggle to hold serve in almost all of her games. She never had room to breathe as Collins continuously struck powerful forehand after powerful backhand. There was little Kasatkina could do against the onslaught. She is a player who excels defensively, but she could do little against well-paced and well-placed Collins strokes and simply was forced to watch the ball go past her many times.

Collins has now won 26 of her last 27 sets. She has beaten three top-10 WTA players over the last two events, and she made even those players look weak. Collins is not ranked in the top 10 currently, but it was telling about how well she has played of late that she was a heavy favorite heading into the Charleston Open final against the higher-ranked Kasatkina.

Danielle Collins overcomes Daria Kasatkina at the Charleston Open

Collins is retiring due to health concerns. She suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and endometriosis. These two conditions won't leave Collins when she stops playing either; she will just need to work at keeping their effects at bay for the rest of her life. But for a professional athlete who is going to stop playing because of her health concerns and then to improve is admirable.

At least to those who watch tennis. For Danielle Collins' opponents, she simply is not fun to play right now. She is in the proverbial zone and can do little wrong. She loses games, sure, but not many sets and certainly not matches at this right. Plus, she won on the hard court at the Miami Open and the clay in Charleston. She is a threat on whatever surface she plays.

She also gives the rest of us hope. If she can overcome her health issues, we all can to a relative degree in whatever we do. She is an inspiration. We should just be happy we do not have to play her right now, though.

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