Naomi Osaka paid tribute to Allen Iverson's intricate cornrows at the US Open, proving natural-hair braids are back on the rise.
The 2026 US Open is upon us and Naomi Osaka is warming up in a red-and-black headband, arm sleeves, and a fresh set of natural-haired cornrows. Every season, she makes an entrance on the court with her unparalleled fashion. This Open, however, her references have been a tribute to the intersection of beauty, fashion, and sports through none other than one of basketball’s greats: Allen Iverson.
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Like Osaka, Iverson was known to make statements on the court, from having his aunt braid his hair on the sidelines to playing in intricate, natural hair braid styles. During Fan Week at the US Open, the Japanese-Haitian American tennis pro referenced a style similar to his at the US vs. Puerto Rico game in 2003 during her practice session.
Her natural hair was braided into six rows of jumbo zig-zag cornrows which reached halfway down her back. Then, by the time she played her first official game on the second day of the Open, she switched her style up, swapping zig-zags for stitched curves, an interpretation similar to Iverson’s braids at his Philadelphia 76ers vs. Toronto Raptors game in 2004.
Her large, natural-haired cornrows were stitched and curved in alternating directions, making a semi-spiral pattern down her scalp. Yet, from the back, the curves looked more like straight backs, straightening out before blending into her brown-highlighted hair. Tossed casually into a low bun with a black-and-red headband to lay her edges, her First Round tribute ended in a 7-6 win against Anastasia Zakharova.
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And, if the US Open is any indication on what’ll be trending at New York Fashion Week, hairstylist and backstage veteran Lacy Redway would know. At just 14-years-old, her first job was working in a braid shop. “Braid designs are back,” Redway asserted in an Instagram post, as she flipped through a photo album archiving hair she braided over 20 years ago.
From human hair micro-braids to crisscrossed cornrows, “these styles existed back in the day,” she says. Now, “all these techniques are coming back.” On TikTok, the hashtag “Natural hair braids” has over 3,000 posts while “Braid styles” have hit 1.4 million. And, with studies proving synthetic and human hair extensions both pose health risks, like Osaka, more Black women are paying to have their natural hair braided into intricate styles instead.
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