US Open · R16 · Hard · 3 Sep 2023
Sorana Cirstea v Belinda Bencic
65–47 in points · Sorana Cirstea won
Why it went the way it did
Sorana Cirstea won 9.0 more points than Belinda Bencic relative to what the serve alone predicted. Belinda Bencic's biggest leaks: backhand execution −1.8, return execution −1.8, serve 1st execution −1.7.
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 | Sorana Cirstea | Belinda Bencic | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | Dir | Sel | Exec | Total | |
| Serve 1st | +0.4 | ±0.0 | −0.4 | −0.1 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | −1.7 | −1.5 |
| Serve 2nd | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +1.3 | +1.4 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −1.1 | −1.0 |
| Return | +0.2 | +0.1 | +1.7 | +1.9 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −1.8 | −2.1 |
| Forehand | −0.1 | +1.4 | −1.4 | −0.2 | +0.6 | +1.4 | +1.0 | +2.9 |
| Backhand | −0.1 | +0.6 | +2.2 | +2.6 | +0.1 | +0.4 | −1.8 | −1.4 |
| Slice | ±0.0 | −1.2 | −0.3 | −1.4 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | +0.4 | ±0.0 |
| Net | +0.2 | +0.1 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | −1.4 | −1.2 |
| Touch | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | −0.8 | −0.5 |
| All shots | +0.4 | +0.9 | +2.9 | +4.2 | +0.9 | +1.6 | −7.3 | −4.8 |
Set by set
| Set | Sorana Cirstea | Belinda Bencic | Net, Sorana | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ±0.0 | −3.7 | +3.7 | |
| 2 | +4.2 | −1.1 | +5.3 |
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.
Sorana Cirstea serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 59% 71% | 7% 50% | 34% 50% |
| 2 | 56% 60% | 4% 100% | 41% 36% |
Set to set −0.11 per 100 first serves in sets 2+
Within sets −0.17 per 100 first serves, every two to three service games
Belinda Bencic serving
| Set | Wide | Body | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 56% 50% | 8% 50% | 36% 44% |
| 2 | 52% 25% | 16% 40% | 32% 50% |
Within sets +0.14 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.
Sorana Cirstea
4.8 points left on the table across 187 shots 2.57 per 100 shots
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your forehand side hit FH through the middle ×8; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.43 pts
- Return +1: drive to your forehand side hit FH through the middle ×5; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.32 pts
- Rally, shots 5–8: volley to your forehand side, opponent at net hit FH through the middle ×1; FH down the line rates higher · 0.21 pts
- Return of a 1st serve, wide, deuce court hit FH down the line ×3; FH crosscourt rates higher · 0.20 pts
Belinda Bencic
4.0 points left on the table across 192 shots 2.06 per 100 shots
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your middle, you at net hit BH through the middle ×2; BH crosscourt rates higher · 0.31 pts
- Return of a 2nd serve, T, ad court hit FH through the middle ×3; FH inside-in rates higher · 0.25 pts
- Return of a 2nd serve, wide, deuce court hit FH down the line ×2; FH inside-out rates higher · 0.20 pts
- Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your middle hit FH through the middle + approach ×1; FH crosscourt + approach rates higher · 0.20 pts