Game plan

Aljaz Bedene v Philipp Kohlschreiber

Every number combines what Aljaz Bedene does well with what Philipp Kohlschreiber allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Aljaz Bedene wins, best of 3 33%90%: 8%–68% · best of 5: 29%

Serve points won 64.8% / 68.5% Aljaz / Philipp · tour 65.7%

Strengths only, no similarity priors 33%serve 64.5% / 68.0%

Each player's serve and return strength is fitted against every opponent they were charted against, so a record built on weak opponents counts for less. At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers. The result is then nudged by Aljaz Bedene's record against Philipp Kohlschreiber's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: +3.9 on serve, −6.9 on return vs expectation (231 points)). A game-by-game Markov chain turns point odds into match odds; the 90% range covers the uncertainty in the two strengths, not the nudges. Charted matches lean toward big events, so treat this as a scouting estimate, not a betting line.

Head to head, per 100 shots

Career	Aljaz	Philipp
Direction choice	+0.05 ±0.07 better than 71%	+0.07 ±0.06 better than 75%
Shot selection	+0.17 ±0.11 better than 71%	−0.21 ±0.11 better than 29%
Execution	−1.34 ±0.44 better than 14%	−0.24 ±0.45 better than 56%
Points left on the table	2.27 ±0.12 lower than 86%	2.49 ±0.11 lower than 62%

Each player's career against an average tour player in the same position, adjusted for opponent strength, with a 90% margin (shots clustered by match). Points left on the table is the gap to the best-value direction for the same stroke, so lower is better. Percentiles are within each player's own tour. A side is highlighted only when the gap is larger than the margin on the difference.

Serve plan

The share of points the server wins when a first serve lands in that direction (hover a rate for its 90% interval; ± is the 90% margin). "Matchup" combines the server's rate with how this returner handles that serve. "Optimal" is the mix that wins most against this returner once they start reading a habit, at the response measured across the tour, and only within the range servers' habits actually vary. The gain over the current mix is how exploitable that mix is.

Aljaz Bedene serving

Deuce court

1st serve	Now	Aljaz wins	v Philipp	Matchup	Optimal
Wide	33%	67%	76%	70.7%±5.8	46% ▲
Body	5%	58%	57%	51.5%±12.1	0% ▼
T	62%	70%	74%	68.6%±5.3	54% ▼

Optimal v Philipp Kohlschreiber: +1.1±0.6 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving wide every time would read +2.2 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serve	Now	Aljaz wins	v Philipp	Matchup	Optimal
Wide	50%	69%	74%	70.4%±5.7	44% ▼
Body	7%	65%	62%	64.4%±10.2	0% ▼
T	43%	69%	77%	73.8%±5.8	56% ▲

Optimal v Philipp Kohlschreiber: +0.5±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.4 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Philipp Kohlschreiber serving

Deuce court

1st serve	Now	Philipp wins	v Aljaz	Matchup	Optimal
Wide	37%	71%	69%	67.5%±5.9	35% ▼
Body	11%	66%	54%	57.4%±10.5	0% ▼
T	51%	73%	73%	70.6%±5.3	65% ▲

Optimal v Aljaz Bedene: +0.7±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.6 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serve	Now	Philipp wins	v Aljaz	Matchup	Optimal
Wide	51%	70%	74%	71.9%±5.0	64% ▲
Body	13%	62%	62%	60.7%±12.1	0% ▼
T	36%	69%	72%	69.6%±6.5	36%

Optimal v Aljaz Bedene: +0.9±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving wide every time would read +2.3 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Return plan

Value of each return, in points per 100 returns against an average return of the same serve (direction, court, surface): the tour's result with that return, the returner's own edge with it, and what this server gives up when it comes back to that side. Returns with no charted direction are left out, so values compare with each other rather than with zero. Depth isn't a choice here: missed returns have no depth. Serve quality isn't charted, so a block through the middle partly reflects the serve that forced it.

Aljaz Bedene returning

1st serve to the forehand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Philipp	Value
FH through the middle	50%	+4.3	−0.8	−0.6	+2.9±2.3
FH crosscourt	32%	+5.5	−1.7	−0.5	+3.4±4.0
FH down the line	15%	+1.7	−2.8	+0.4	−0.7±4.3
BH through the middle	2%	+6.6	−0.2	±0.0	+6.4±2.0
FH slice through the middle	1%	−4.2	−1.1	−0.1	−5.4±1.9

Lean FH crosscourt: +0.9±3.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (406 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Philipp	Value
BH through the middle	42%	+6.4	−2.2	±0.0	+4.3±2.0
BH crosscourt	30%	+8.8	−1.0	+1.5	+9.3±2.8
BH down the line	10%	+4.2	+0.3	+1.1	+5.6±4.5
BH slice through the middle	8%	−4.2	+1.8	−2.1	−4.5±2.4
BH slice crosscourt	4%	+0.5	−1.6	+1.5	+0.4±2.9

Lean BH crosscourt: +4.6±2.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (640 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Philipp	Value
FH through the middle	43%	−3.5	−4.0	−0.7	−8.2±2.7
FH crosscourt	35%	−0.2	+1.8	−1.7	−0.1±4.2
FH down the line	17%	−1.8	−1.9	−0.4	−4.1±4.3
BH inside-in	5%	+2.5	+0.4	+1.3	+4.3±2.4

Lean FH crosscourt: +3.9±3.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (95 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Philipp	Value
BH through the middle	39%	−2.9	−0.2	−1.1	−4.1±2.0
BH crosscourt	37%	+1.0	+1.5	+1.3	+3.9±2.7
FH through the middle	10%	−2.9	±0.0	−0.7	−3.6±2.2
BH down the line	8%	−0.2	−0.9	+1.1	±0.0±4.9
FH inside-in	4%	+0.6	+3.5	−1.7	+2.4±3.9

Lean BH crosscourt: +4.3±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (368 returns charted)

Philipp Kohlschreiber returning

1st serve to the forehand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Aljaz	Value
FH through the middle	48%	+4.3	−2.0	−0.2	+2.0±2.4
FH crosscourt	29%	+5.5	−3.4	+0.3	+2.4±4.0
FH down the line	18%	+1.7	−1.9	−2.9	−3.1±4.4
FH slice through the middle	3%	−4.2	+0.3	−1.0	−4.9±2.2
BH inside-in	1%	+7.7	−0.3	−3.5	+3.9±3.1

Lean FH crosscourt: +1.5±3.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (522 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Aljaz	Value
BH through the middle	33%	+6.4	−1.2	−0.5	+4.7±2.2
BH crosscourt	18%	+8.8	−0.8	−3.5	+4.5±3.3
BH slice through the middle	18%	−4.2	−0.3	−2.3	−6.8±2.3
BH down the line	14%	+4.2	−2.1	+1.7	+3.8±4.5
BH slice crosscourt	13%	+0.5	+1.4	+2.3	+4.3±3.0

Lean BH through the middle: +2.8±1.8 per 100 returns v the current mix (731 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Aljaz	Value
FH through the middle	47%	−3.5	−0.9	−0.1	−4.5±2.7
FH crosscourt	30%	−0.2	−2.7	+2.8	−0.2±4.3
FH down the line	23%	−1.8	−2.7	−1.7	−6.2±4.6

Lean FH crosscourt: +3.4±3.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (143 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

Return	Now	Tour	Own	v Aljaz	Value
BH through the middle	35%	−2.9	+0.5	−1.0	−3.4±2.1
BH crosscourt	24%	+1.0	−2.0	+0.4	−0.5±2.8
FH through the middle	13%	−2.9	+0.6	−0.1	−2.3±2.3
BH down the line	11%	−0.2	−1.3	+2.2	+0.7±5.0
FH inside-in	6%	+0.6	−1.0	+2.8	+2.3±4.2

Lean FH inside-in: +4.2±4.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (505 returns charted)

Rally plan

Edge, in points per 100 shots: the hitter's skill with the shot (own) plus how much the receiver usually gives up against it (theirs), both measured against the tour average on grass. Each player's grass record is shrunk toward their all-surface one, so a thin sample on it moves the numbers only a little.

Aljaz Bedene

Favour

Shot	Edge	Own	Theirs
BH to their backhand · return	+3.7±3.6	+1.2	+2.5
FH to their forehand · serve +1	+3.2±4.1	−1.9	+5.1
FH to their backhand · return +1	+2.3±4.6	−0.3	+2.6
BH to their backhand · return +1	+1.1±4.0	−0.5	+1.6
BH to their backhand · rally	+0.9±3.5	+0.6	+0.3
BH to their forehand · rally	−0.3±4.3	−1.6	+1.3

Avoid

Shot	Edge	Own	Theirs
BH slice to their forehand · rally	−6.7±3.4	−3.5	−3.2
FH to their backhand · serve +1	−6.3±4.5	−5.7	−0.6
FH to their backhand · rally	−5.8±4.2	−2.3	−3.5
BH to their forehand · return +1	−5.5±5.8	+0.2	−5.7
BH slice to their backhand · rally	−4.3±2.9	−3.8	−0.6

Philipp Kohlschreiber

Favour

Shot	Edge	Own	Theirs
BH to their forehand · serve +1	+6.3±5.6	+4.0	+2.3
BH to the middle · serve +1	+3.8±3.1	+2.9	+0.9
BH slice to their backhand · return	+3.5±3.6	+1.6	+1.9
FH to their forehand · return +1	+2.1±4.6	+0.8	+1.3
BH to their backhand · serve +1	+1.2±3.7	+2.2	−1.0
FH to the middle · return +1	+1.1±2.6	−0.1	+1.2

Avoid

Shot	Edge	Own	Theirs
FH to their backhand · return	−7.3±4.6	−4.2	−3.1
BH to their backhand · rally	−4.7±2.9	−4.0	−0.6
BH to their backhand · return	−4.5±3.7	−2.4	−2.1
FH to their forehand · serve +1	−4.1±4.1	−4.5	+0.4
FH to their forehand · return	−3.9±4.8	−5.3	+1.4

Against Philipp Kohlschreiber-like opponents

Aljaz Bedene v	Matches	Serve pts won	Return pts won
All charted opponents	–	58.6%	36.6%
Players most similar to Philipp Kohlschreiber	1	66.1%	27.4%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Stefanos Tsitsipas, Joao Fonseca, Zizou Bergs, Aleksandar Vukic, Borna Coric, David Goffin, Dominic Thiem, Kyle Edmund, Fernando Verdasco, Juan Martin Del Potro. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.