US Open · F · Hard · 8 Sep 2007
Svetlana Kuznetsova v Justine Henin
55–70 in points · Justine Henin won
Why it went the way it did
Justine Henin won 7.7 more points than Svetlana Kuznetsova relative to what the serve alone predicted. Svetlana Kuznetsova's biggest leaks: forehand execution −6.0, backhand execution −2.7, slice shot selection −1.4.
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 | Svetlana Kuznetsova | Justine Henin | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | |
| Serve 1st | +0.5 | −0.1 | +1.5 | +1.9 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +0.6 | +0.6 |
| Serve 2nd | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +1.2 | +1.3 | −0.1 | ±0.0 | −1.8 | −1.9 |
| Return | −0.1 | +0.2 | −1.3 | −1.3 | −0.3 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −0.6 |
| Forehand | +0.6 | +1.8 | −6.0 | −3.6 | −0.3 | +1.6 | +3.7 | +5.1 |
| Backhand | +0.2 | +0.2 | −2.7 | −2.3 | −0.1 | +0.6 | −2.4 | −1.9 |
| Slice | −0.3 | −1.4 | +0.6 | −1.0 | −0.1 | −1.6 | +0.6 | −1.1 |
| Net | +0.5 | +0.5 | −0.6 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +2.1 |
| Touch | −0.2 | −0.4 | +0.2 | −0.4 | −0.1 | −0.6 | +0.9 | +0.2 |
| All shots | +1.1 | +0.9 | −7.1 | −5.1 | −0.4 | +0.7 | +2.3 | +2.6 |
Set by set
| Set | Svetlana Kuznetsova | Justine Henin | Net, Svetlana | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | −4.5 | +2.5 | −7.0 | |
| 2 | −0.6 | +0.1 | −0.6 |
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.
Svetlana Kuznetsova serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 40% 50% | 3% 0% | 57% 41% |
| 2 | 68% 70% | 3% 100% | 29% 40% |
Set to set +1.09 per 100 first serves in sets 2+
Within sets +0.90 per 100 first serves, every two to three service games
Justine Henin serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29% 83% | 19% 75% | 52% 64% |
| 2 | 15% 67% | 10% 25% | 75% 67% |
Within sets −0.87 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.
Svetlana Kuznetsova
5.5 points left on the table across 224 shots 2.44 per 100 shots
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your middle hit FH through the middle ×5; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.35 pts
- Return +1: drive to your backhand side, opponent at net hit BH lob down the line ×2; BH lob crosscourt rates higher · 0.35 pts
- Long rally, 9+: volley to your forehand side, opponent at net hit FH through the middle ×1; FH down the line rates higher · 0.31 pts
- Long rally, 9+: drive to your backhand side hit BH slice through the middle + approach ×1; BH slice down the line + approach rates higher · 0.21 pts
Justine Henin
7.1 points left on the table across 228 shots 3.11 per 100 shots
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your forehand side hit FH through the middle ×12; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.65 pts
- Return of a 2nd serve, wide, deuce court hit FH through the middle ×3; FH inside-out rates higher · 0.34 pts
- Long rally, 9+: volley to your forehand side, opponent at net hit FH through the middle ×1; FH down the line rates higher · 0.31 pts
- Return +1: drive to your forehand side hit FH through the middle ×4; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.25 pts