Zurich · QF · Hard · 21 Oct 2004
Maria Sharapova v Venus Williams
65–56 in points · Maria Sharapova won
Why it went the way it did
Maria Sharapova won 4.0 more points than Venus Williams relative to what the serve alone predicted. Venus Williams's biggest leaks: forehand execution −2.2, return execution −1.3, slice execution −0.9.
Each shot moves its hitter's chance of winning the point. Those moves are split into direction choice, shot selection and execution, and summed here. Read both columns together: one player's gain is the other's loss.
| Shot | Maria Sharapova | Venus Williams | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | |
| Serve 1st | +0.3 | −0.1 | −0.6 | −0.4 | +0.2 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.3 |
| Serve 2nd | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −0.8 | −0.8 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.8 | +0.8 |
| Return | ±0.0 | +0.2 | −0.5 | −0.3 | −0.3 | +0.5 | −1.3 | −1.1 |
| Forehand | +0.5 | +0.6 | +2.3 | +3.4 | −0.3 | +0.7 | −2.2 | −1.8 |
| Backhand | −0.2 | −0.1 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.7 |
| Slice | +0.1 | −0.4 | −0.6 | −0.9 | −0.2 | −0.5 | −0.9 | −1.6 |
| Net | −0.1 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.1 |
| Touch | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | +0.1 | ±0.0 |
| All shots | +0.6 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +1.2 | −0.3 | +0.9 | −3.4 | −2.8 |
Set by set
| Set | Maria Sharapova | Venus Williams | Net, Maria | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | −0.5 | −1.9 | +1.4 | |
| 2 | +1.7 | −0.9 | +2.6 |
Adaptation
First-serve direction mix set by set, with the share of points each direction won. The scores measure whether the server moved toward the directions that had been winning earlier in this match, set to set and every two to three service games, in points per 100 first serves. Read them as a habit, not a gain: across the tour, a direction's edge in early sets barely predicts the later ones. Whether the returner responded can't be told apart from noise within one match.
Maria Sharapova serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 52% 56% | 10% 33% | 39% 67% |
| 2 | 45% 60% | 12% 75% | 42% 57% |
Set to set −0.42 per 100 first serves in sets 2+
Within sets +0.28 per 100 first serves, every two to three service games
Venus Williams serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 32% 86% | 23% 40% | 45% 30% |
| 2 | 47% 56% | 3% 100% | 50% 47% |
Within sets +1.55 per 100 first serves, every two to three service games
Counterfactual: the best direction every time
If each shot had gone in the direction that is usually worth most for that stroke and position, this is how many more points each player would expect to win. It's an upper bound: the best direction isn't always on, and the chart can't see the ball's pace or position.
Maria Sharapova
4.3 points left on the table across 182 shots 2.34 per 100 shots
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your backhand side hit BH through the middle ×7; BH crosscourt rates higher · 0.30 pts
- Return of a 2nd serve, wide, deuce court hit FH down the line ×3; FH inside-out rates higher · 0.30 pts
- Serve +1: mid-depth return to your middle hit FH through the middle ×3; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.25 pts
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your middle, you at net hit FH volley through the middle ×1; FH volley crosscourt rates higher · 0.24 pts
Venus Williams
5.0 points left on the table across 186 shots 2.71 per 100 shots
- Return of a 2nd serve, T, ad court hit FH through the middle ×5; FH inside-in rates higher · 0.41 pts
- Return of a 2nd serve, wide, deuce court hit FH through the middle ×2; FH inside-out rates higher · 0.23 pts
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your forehand side hit FH through the middle ×4; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.22 pts
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your middle hit FH through the middle ×3; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.21 pts