Diana Maximovna Shnaider (Russian: Диа́на Макси́мовна Шна́йдер; Russian pronunciation:[dʲɪˈanəˈʂnaɪ̯dɛr]; born 2 April 2004) is a Russian professional tennis player.[3] She has career-high rankings of world No. 23 in singles and No. 65 in doubles, both achieved on 22 July 2024.
Shnaider was born in Zhigulevsk to father Maxim and mother Yulia. Her father is a lawyer and former boxer of German descent, while her mother is an English teacher. Her family later moved to Tolyatti.[4]
She began playing tennis at the age of four. At the age of eight, she began pursuing the sport seriously, training with coach Samvel Minasyan in Moscow.[4] In 2022, she moved to the United States and enrolled at North Carolina State University, where she played college tennis for the NC State Wolfpack.[5][6]
Shnaider's signature on-court look consists of a blue polka-dot bandana. She began wearing headscarves as a child to prevent sunburn, preferring them over caps and visors.[7][8]
Shnaider made her Grand Slam debut at the 2023 Australian Open, after qualifying into the main draw.[10] She defeated Kristína Kučová, who was using a protected ranking, for her first win at a major, before losing in the second round to sixth seed Maria Sakkari. As a result, she reached the top 100, at world No. 94, on 30 January 2023.
After the Australian Open, Shnaider played one season of college tennis for North Carolina State.[11] She went 20–3 in singles to help the Wolfpack win the ACC tournament and reach the 2023 NCAA Championships final.[12] She was named the ACC tournament's most valuable player and ACC Freshman of the Year and received first-team All-ACC and All-American honors in singles and doubles.[12]
In Hua Hin, Thailand, she reached her fourth career quarterfinal, defeating top seed Magda Linette and Paula Badosa by retirement.[17] Next, she defeated qualifier Dalma Gálfi and third seed Wang Xinyu to reach her second career final. Shnaider then defeated second seed Zhu Lin in three sets to win her first ever WTA Tour title.[18] At the Miami Open, she lost in the second round to 17th seed Madison Keys, in a little over an hour.
Shnaider won her third title of the year at the 2024 Hungarian Open, defeating Aliaksandra Sasnovich in straight sets in the final[19][20] and moving up to a career-high singles ranking of world number 23 as a result.[21]
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.
^ abThe first Premier 5 event of the year has switched back and forth between the Dubai Tennis Championships and the Qatar Ladies Open since 2009. Dubai was classified as a Premier 5 event from 2009–2011 before being succeeded by Doha for the 2012–2014 period. In 2015, Dubai regained its Premier 5 status while Doha was demoted to Premier status. The Premier 5 tournaments were reclassified as WTA 1000 tournaments in 2021.