“Suddenly We Only Had Five Minutes To Finish That Hair”: Meet Wimbledon’s First On-Site Players Barber

From eleventh hour cuts, hair-related match superstitions and players nodding off – Karina Swann’s seen it all in her SW19 styling chair.

“The first thing they do is stick their head through the door and go, ‘Oh my god, you’re back,’” Karina Swann says. She pauses from duty to chat to Man About Town, in a stolen moment during the 2026 Wimbledon tournament: one of UK sport’s busiest fortnights that comes just over halfway through the 11-month tennis season. 

Taking players to all corners of the globe, the annual schedule of the white sport means time at home is a rarity for its players. As such, constants are few and far between. But when it comes to their arrival at the oldest tennis tournament in the world, one moment of familiarity is the sight of Swann, holding court at the not-so-secret Wimbledon Players’ Salon. “Oh, it's really lovely. I get a lot of hugs. I'm actually just over six ft myself, so for three weeks of the year, I feel really normal. I’ve received a lot of really lovely tall man hugs.”

Stationed just across from No. 1 Court, Glasgow-hailing Swann has been employed as both the Player Salon’s manager and inaugural barber since 2019. She takes three weeks out from her salon in East Hampshire to see to the hair needs of SW19’s on-court stars. “It’s sometimes a little tense because we try to fit so many people in,” she says. “Quite often we end up having to do four haircuts in an hour, so the pressure is on.” You could say she is swan by name and by her approach. “You're just gliding on the top and paddling furiously under. We try not to let it show.” 

Swann worked across different departments at Wimbledon before settling in the salon. She specialises in clipper work and recalls having to do many awkward repair jobs. Additionally, despite Wimbledon-grade expert pre-planning, last-minute changes present themselves’. Swann recalls one haircut performed at the eleventh hour: “The gentleman knew he was playing that day, but the match before him suddenly got cancelled. Suddenly we only had five minutes to finish that hair. Thankfully that’s only ever happened once since I’ve been here, but that was definitely memorable.”

Pressure aside, due to Wimbledon’s cachet, for a hairdresser-cum-tennis-enthusiast like Swann, her yearly summer gig is something of a dream-realised. And her half-an-hour haircuts are embraced as warmly by players. In some cases, simply for the brief window it gives them to unwind. “We’ve even had a couple of them fall asleep. I had a gentleman in for a shave, and he fell asleep during that.” 

If you’re wondering if Swann has been privy to any other curious pre-match rituals – beyond drifting off – you might need to look further. “Obviously this sort of thing is going to be very, very individual, and there's always going to be superstitions.” Although a haircut is not likely to be the key determinant between a total loss or bagel, some players beg to differ. “Some refuse to get their hair cut at all, or some will have to have it done beforehand. But nothing too unusual”, she says, the traditional barber’s standard of client confidentiality evidently in full flow. 

And it’s not just haircuts. “The gents come in for manicures, and we’ve even had a couple of guys coming in for gel manicures too. They can have whatever they want,” Swann notes. “There are no restrictions or anything for the men’s nails from Wimbledon’s end. So, we have done a lot of nail art. Little tennis balls or strawberries are always really popular, and little rackets. We do all sorts of things.”

Wimbledon’s already sweat-inducing on-court proceedings have been intensified this year by the third heatwave of 2026. The temperature on day one of the tournament made it the hottest opening day in Wimbledon history. So when it comes to Swann’s most-used products, it’s perhaps no surprise that remedying heat exposure is high on the agenda. “We’re always trying to counteract a lot of sun damage and breakage,” she says. “I’d say moisture balm and intensive conditioner are our most used products.” However, they’re superseded by a different styling aid on final day, used not on either prospective champion, but rather on the ball boys and girls. “When we have them in for the final it involves a large amount of hairspray to make sure everything stays in place.” 

Through the stress and premium expectations, Swann reminisces fondly on her time behind the chair. “Some of the players I've seen for the last seven years, so it's like seeing family again. It’s lovely. At first, it felt a bit surreal at times. I think Neal Skupski might have been one of my first clients, and Leon Smith, the Davis Cup team manager.” But the enduring highlight remains the occasions she worked with fellow Scot, Sir Andy Murray. “He is just such a legend, not only for Scotland, but also for the UK. He’s such a genuinely lovely person.”