Diana Shnaider finds unexpected new coach who is still an active player after sudden Dinara Safina split

Diana Shnaider was left in the position where she didn't have a coach before Roland Garros after a sudden split with Dinara Safina, the former World No.1. Despite that she still reached the Quarter-Finals of the Rome Open losing out to Jasmine Paolini.

But Shnaider has now turned instead of a fellow Russian to a Romanian. She will team up with Marius Copil in Paris. If the partnership is successful, he could become her full time coach going forward.

The 21-year-old has four titles to her name and is on the cusp of the top ten but time has been of the essence with Shnaider undergoing a similar situation of last season without a coach. She had to be coached by her father up until she formed a union with Safina after she split with her coach late last year.

Without a coach, she still had success losing to Jasmine Paolini ranked World No.5 7-6, 4-6, 2-6. The Italian reached the final where she will play today against Coco Gauff.

The interesting aspect too about her union with Copil is that the former top 100 player is still an active player. He returned to the court this Spring after a long absence taking part in doubles with Luca Preda. He had undergone a heel operation in May last year. But it seems in the short term, he will take a backseat on that.

It seems that with Shnaider there as an opportunity, he will only really play doubles when it is fully needed. "I played very little and the last two or three years were very complicated for me. I didn't know what I wanted to do, if I wanted to play anymore... I'll continue... I'll continue with singles, I'll continue with doubles... So I don't know what's next, that's the answer, but I'm training every day, I'm keeping fit and let's see what happens," said Copil last month as per Eurosport.