Shnaider Crushes Sevastova Without Dropping a Game to Reach Madrid Round of 16

Looking for a breakthrough in 2025, Diana Shnaider, who won four tournaments last year, enlisted Dinara Safina as her coach to prepare for the clay-court season.

While the results weren’t immediate in Stuttgart (the Russian lost to Elise Mertens in the second round), the world No. 13 has now reached the round of 16 in this WTA 1000 Madrid event.

After a dominant win over Katie Volynets in her opening second-round match (6-1, 6-2), the 21-year-old Shnaider was even more ruthless against the returning Anastasija Sevastova.

The Latvian, who had previously eliminated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Jelena Ostapenko in the tournament, was no match this time. In just 44 minutes, Shnaider secured victory without conceding a single game (6-0, 6-0).

For the third time this season and the first since the Australian Open, the Russian has strung together two consecutive wins in a single tournament, advancing to the round of 16 where she will face the winner of the clash between Linda Noskova and Iga Swiatek. This victory also lifts Shnaider two spots in the live rankings, temporarily placing her at No. 11.