Diana Shnaider splits with coach Carlos Martinez after series of poor results

Russia’s Diana Shnaider has reportedly split up with her coach Carlos Martinez after a series of unimpressive performances in the recent past. The 21-year-old is going through a lean patch this year, where she has won just 19 out of her 36 matches and suffered 17 defeats in the process. In the last seven matches across four different competitions in the singles category, Shnaider has lost four of them.

Those results have apparently resulted in Shnaider parting ways with her coach, Martinez. The development was confirmed by Martinez while speaking to UbiTennis. While speaking to the digital platform, Martinez explained why both individuals decided to part ways so soon after starting to work together.

“It’s a bit confusing because I started working with Diana in Queens. I was all grass court season with her,” said Martinez. “Then I went to Montreal with her. When we finished the tournament, we decided to stop because for me, some things were not the way that I expected. Maybe for her it was the same, I don’t know. But we decided in a good way to finish. I know that now she’s trying with Sasha. We decided to go our separate ways. I think that is much better.”

The decision came as a surprise as Martinez is an experienced coach who has already worked with the likes of the former world number one Simona Halep, Australia’s Daria Kasatkina, Denmark’s Clara Tauson and Spain’s Marc Lopez.

On the other hand, the decision makes some sense for Shnaider, who came into this year hoping to build on what she did last year, which was undoubtedly the most successful 12 months of her professional tennis career. In 2024, Shnaider lifted four WTA titles. Those are the only four titles she has lifted at the highest level in the singles category.

Shnaider lifted the Trophée Clarins title in Paris, where she got the better of America’s Emma Navarro in the final with a score of 6-2, 3-6, 6-4. Shnaider’s second title last year came in Homburg, where she defeated Croatia’s Donna Vekic in the final with a score of 6-3, 2-6, 6-3. Her third title in 2024 came in Budapest, where she lifted the Hungarian Grand Prix after beating Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4. Her fourth and final title in 2024 was the Hong Kong Open, where she defeated Britain’s Katie Boulter in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-1, 6-2.

This year, Shnaider’s record has been nothing like what she achieved last year. She has featured in 17 different events and has not managed to get past the quarterfinals stage. Her best outing was playing in the last eight rounds on two occasions. Her first quarterfinal appearance came at the Adelaide International, where she lost to Yulia Putintseva with a score of 7-6, 6-7, 6-4. At the Rome Masters, Shnaider featured in the quarterfinal but lost to Italy’s Jasmine Paolini with a score of 6-7, 6-4, 6-2. Shnaider’s most recent appearance came at the ongoing Canadian Open, where she lost in the second round to Marie Bouzkova in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 7-6. It was her first appearance after losing in the second round at Wimbledon earlier this year.

The report also stated that Shnaider has started working with Sasha Bajin. The 40-year-old is famous for his work with the former world number one, Japan’s Naomi Osaka, between 2017 and 2019. During that time, Osaka has gathered a lot of success, including winning the US Open in 2018 and the Australian Open in 2019. Osaka is not the only former world number one with whom Bajin has worked. He has also mentored two-time Grand Slam runner-up Karolina Pliskova.