Cult fave Diana Shnaider brings out polka-dot bandana for US Open breakthrough 

NEW YORK —No. 18 seed Diana Shnaider is leaning into her growing status as a US Open cult favorite, her recognizable on-court look drawing in fans as quickly as her powerful lefty game.

On a clear day, you can see Diana easily stand out in Flushing Meadows thanks to her signature polka-dot bandana scarf—an eye-catching element of her match kit dating back to her earliest days on the junior circuit.

“I tried visors, I tried caps, but I just couldn’t see and I was feeling uncomfortable,” Shnaider told Baseline in Cincinnati, as she recalled her first outdoors matches at the age of nine or 10.

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“My mom just went into a shop and randomly saw a bandana, and was like, 'Oh okay, I got it! We’ll see how this feels.' It’s covering my hair completely, and so I tried it and it felt comfortable.”

The Tolyatti native has always dared to make her own path in tennis—from her unique and practical headwear to her decision to a big move from Moscow to Raleigh, where she pursued a tennis scholarship ay North Carolina State University. She only needed one year with the NCAA before turning pro in 2023.

Shnaider knows her distinctive look grabs attention amid a sea of caps and headbands, and in the age of social media trolling that attention is not always positive. The 20-year-old says there was a time when she almost retired the look altogether—now, she can’t see herself playing without it, and neither can her growing social media following.

“I had a moment in my teenage years where I was thinking to stop playing in it because I was feeling a bit anxious about people saying weird stuff,” she admitted. “(I felt like) all people were looking at me and I didn't feel comfortable. But my parents just made me wear it.

"Now I'm very pleased that they made me do it, because actually now I feel much more comfortable playing in it... Day by day (in Toronto and in Cincy), there was more people cheering for me and people who started following me."

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Over the years Shnaider has amassed a collection of headscarves that she keeps on constant rotation. She has a lucky bandana (of course), alternating between dark blue and bright pink—based on what apparel sponsor Adidas has outfitted her in that week.

“I travel with all of them; it just depends on the outfit,” she grinned. “I feel like my luckiest bandana right now is the dark blue one. I feel like I won most of the tournaments in it.”

At the Open, Shnaider is wearing the brand’s Aeroready Premium Dress in the cobalt blue, black and white of the 2024 New York Collection—which calls for dark blue and polka dots.

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Having started the year just inside the WTA’s Top 100, Shnaider came to NYC at a career-high world No. 18—charging up the rankings by winning three WTA titles. Even more impressively, each title was won on a different surface: Hua Hin on hard courts, Bad Homburg on grass and Budapest on clay.

A week after partnering Mirra Andreeva to win the silver medal in women’s doubles at the Olympic Games in Paris, Shnaider booked a spot in her first WTA 1000 semifinal in Toronto, scoring upsets over Coco Gauff and No. 6 seed Ludmilla Samsonova along the way.

Now, she’s looking to keep the momentum going at the US Open, where she’s into the third round of a Grand Slam for only the second time in her career, having beaten Nadia Podoroska and Clara Tauson without dropping a set.

“I think it's just a matter where I can play aggressive but at the same time, I can wait for the right moment to be aggressive,” Shnaider says of her all-court game.

“You cannot slap the ball and finish in two shots. But at the same time, I also can slap the ball and finish the point in two shots!

“I think it’s just about managing and adapting to the conditions, to the surfaces, and understanding how to play on each surface.”

No. 18 seed Shnaider will next face Sara Errani for what would be a breakthrough run at a major tournament. Are we a week away from seeing the bandana becoming a widespread fashion trend?

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