Shapovalov's Big Swap: A Backwards Hat For A Bandana
When Denis Shapovalov began his clay-court season, he made news that had nothing to do with his game. The Canadian had traded his backwards hat for a bandana.
The 22-year-old has sported the new look in Barcelona, Estoril and now Madrid, where on Sunday he reached the second round of the Mutua Madrid Open with a 6-1, 6-3 win against Dusan Lajovic.
“I don’t know. I was just feeling it,” Shapovalov said, cracking a smile. “Actually, I had a haircut, and it went a little bit too short, shorter than I wanted it. I did want to get it short, but not this short.
“It was definitely the look I wanted to just change [things] up. But it’s tough to wear a bandana when you have long hair. So I have no idea how Rafa was doing it back in the day.”
According to Shapovalov, there was a practical reason to wear a backwards hat.
“The hair always gets in my face. I wanted to cut my hair a bit shorter and just try out the bandana look. I definitely like it. I feel like it’s different,” Shapovalov said. “I wore a bandana when I was really young, so it’s kind of cool to just change it up. I was just bored, I guess.”