‘She is allowed to lose sometimes’ – Andy Roddick comforts Danielle Collins following disappointing loss to defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid
Danielle Collins ‘ fifteen-match win streak came to an end today at the hands of World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka .
The American went down in a close three-set match, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6. Earlier this year, she announced that this may be her last season on Tour, following it up with a dream run at home, winning Miami and Charleston in consecutive weeks.
Fans expected her to continue this run on clay and go all the way to Madrid, but these dreams were crushed by the Belarusian. During a live podcast on The Tennis Channel, Andy Roddick backed his fellow American when Collins went out and was questioned.
You can save it. I’ll say that Sabalenka is pretty good. I know Danielle Collins has played great stuff winning Miami, winning in Charleston. She’s allowed to lose sometimes. Sabalenka by the way won the Australian Open this year, so not like an upset let’s not treat it like an upset yet. Andy Roddick on Tennis Channel Podcast
Andy Roddick shut down fans who expected Collins to keep winning and were disappointed by her loss. He stressed the fact that Sabalenka is no novice, and suffering a loss against her does not mean Collins is losing her edge.
Talented Mirra Andreeva is set to face the defending champion Aryna Sabakenka hurdle
Mirra Andreeva, the sixteen-year-old Russian, took everyone by surprise with the level of play that she brought to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open in her very first main-draw appearance.
Glimpses of this level were shown throughout last year when she made it to the final of the junior Australian Open and also to the second round of the US Open.
The last few months did not bear the best result for the youngster, with multiple first-round losses coming in at that time. In Madrid, however, she seems to have found her groove again, making it to the quarterfinal.
On her journey into the last eight, Andreeva got the better of three seeded players, including former Wimbledon Champion and 7th seed, Marketa Vondrousova.
In the quarterfinal, she faces Aryna Sabalenka in a David and Goliath scenario. Last year, Sabalenka made quick work of the emerging star at the same tournament, 6-3, 6-1. It may not be as simple this year, with Sabalenka still resurging in form and Andreeva playing her best tennis with nothing to lose.