Danielle Collins is one of the most interesting tennis players in the WTA Tour right now. The American player, who won the NCAA singles title in 2014 and 2016, reached a career-high ranking of No. 23 in January after her decent performance in the first few tournaments of the year. But it looks like a health issue may hamper her move to the upper reaches of the world rankings.
What is the rheumatoid arthritis
After reportedly suffering from multiple instances of pain and swelling, Danielle Collins has announced that she has been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. This makes Collins the second prominent WTA player in the past year to confirm that they have the condition.
While she is sad because of the effect the condition will have on her, the American player, who revealed the news on her Instagram account, said that she felt some sense of relief when she was told about it. At least now, she knows what is causing her great pain and inflammation.
Her physician Dr. Clifton Page, however, clarified that the condition will not be a career-ending illness for the American player. It is a good thing that Collins was diagnosed early, which means proper treatments and illness management can be done.
Collins, for her part, remains optimistic about her future. She said that she is still thankful for her health and she is committed to fighting her illness.
The announcement of Caroline Wozniacki
Late last year, the Danish player also divulged her own rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis. The Danish tennis star was visibly in shock when she announced the news during the 2018 WTA Finals. Back then Wozniacki said that she will have to live with the condition with the hopes that she will still be able to perform well in the courts.
She certainly did not let her diagnosis stop her, winning one match against Petra Kvitova during that year-end singles finals event in Shenzhen. She did, however, struggle in the past few months in tournaments, resulting in her ranking to decline to the current no. 24.
Meanwhile, Wozniacki’s father and coach Piotr revealed that there were a lot of problems that hindered the Danish player from doing her 100-percent during practice sessions. He said that her condition definitely affected the consistency by which she can perform in the court.
The rivalry between Collins, Wozniacki
What is interesting is Collins and Wozniacki actually faced each other twice in the past few months, making them rivals on court. Wozniacki, a former world No. 1, had to retire during their Italian Open match because of a lower leg injury. But she fought back in the US Open, where she sank Collins in their second-round match.
Danielle Rose Collins’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.33, Danielle played her last match on the 29th of September when she was defeated by Kristina Mladenovic 6-3 6-2 in the 1st round in Beijing.
Danielle Rose Collins’s best performance of the present year was reaching the semi-finals in at the Australian Open.
Caroline Wozniacki’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.24, the Dane played her last match on the 5th of October when she was defeated by Naomi Osaka 6-4 6-2 in the semifinal in Beijing.
Caroline Wozniacki’s best performance of this year was getting to the final in Charleston.
Danielle Rose Collins and Caroline Wozniacki played each other 3 times. The head to head is 2-1 for Wozniacki.
The last time that they competed against each other, Caroline Wozniacki won 4-6 6-3 6-4 in the 2nd round in The New York in 29th August 2019.
Here the highlights.
Danielle Rose Collins and Caroline Wozniacki |
| Embed from Getty Images |
