Diana Shnaider: Polka Dots, Passion and the Perfect Match

FORMER NC STATE STANDOUT HIRED SASCHA BAJIN LAST SUMMER

It can be dizzying trying to keep up with coaching matchups these days, as players seemingly cycle from one mentor to another in search of the ideal fit. Take Brit superstar Emma Raducanu, who’s worked with at least nine different coaches since her historic teen breakthrough at the 2021 US Open.

Former NC State standout Diana Shnaider can relate. The 21-year-old lefthander parted ways with two coaches in 2025 alone (former world No. 1 Dinara Safina and Carlos Martinez) before settling on Sascha Bajin, known for his stints with everyone from Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka to Karolina Pliskova and Donna Vekic.

“It’s hard for people outside of tennis to understand that, that we cannot just put a finger in the air, like, ‘This is going to be my perfect coach to win a Grand Slam.’” — Diana Shnaider

As the seventh seed underlined on Monday at the Credit One Charleston Open, it can be tricky finding someone who is an amalgamation of strategist, hitting partner, sounding board, motivator and traveling companion.

“It [can be] about how I feel around the person,” said Shnaider, currently No. 19 in the PIF WTA Rankings. “We travel nonstop everywhere together. I see my coach more than my family, so it should definitely be a person who I really trust, who I can have fun with, but also who I can be upset with and share my thoughts with. At the same time, I need a person who can push me on the court. We have to have the same vision for what we want to achieve, what to work on. They have to have the same vision of my game style. If you see the process going the right direction, maybe even if the results aren’t there, I think that’s the most important thing.”

The winner of five tour-level singles titles and an Olympic silver medal (2024) alongside countrywoman Mirra Andreeva, Shnaider says there’s no exact science to finding the perfect match; that it’s often a trial-and-error undertaking.

“That’s the funny part of it — because you never know until you really try to work with the person. Maybe you see one thing from the outside, but then you start working with the person and it’s completely opposite. That’s why sometimes you’ve got to change. You understand that it’s not the right thing, it’s not the right person you want to be with. I feel like sometimes it’s hard for people outside of tennis to understand that, that we cannot just put a finger in the air, like, ‘This is going to be my perfect coach to win a Grand Slam.’ It doesn’t work like that, unfortunately.”

“For a few weeks, it’s a little bit back and forth. It’s not like you just go and trust the person straightaway. All relationships need time. By the time you understand that it’s not the right person, you just need to split.”

Shnaider has twice reached the Round of 16 in Charleston, just a four-hour drive south from her old collegiate stomping grounds. Who knows: Maybe her new coaching connection with Bajin will take her a step or two further in 2026. Following an opening-round bye, the polka-dot-bandana-donning baseliner will kick off her clay campaign against 86th-ranked American Katie Volynets, against whom she is 2-0.