RallyIQ

Game plan

Andreas Seppi v Marcos Baghdatis

Every number combines what Andreas Seppi does well with what Marcos Baghdatis allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Andreas Seppi wins, best of 3 26%90%: 7%–59% · best of 5: 21%
Serve points won 60.0% / 65.1% Andreas / Marcos · tour 65.7%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 26%serve 60.0% / 65.1%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Andreas Seppi's record against Marcos Baghdatis's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads. 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

CareerAndreasMarcos
Direction choice−0.08 ±0.05
better than 36%
+0.06 ±0.08
better than 73%
Shot selection−0.27 ±0.12
better than 26%
+0.03 ±0.14
better than 56%
Execution−0.27 ±0.42
better than 54%
+0.25 ±0.57
better than 78%
Points left on the table2.46 ±0.08
lower than 67%
2.25 ±0.14
lower than 89%

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.

Andreas Seppi serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowAndreas winsv MarcosMatchupOptimal
Wide48%68%68%62.9%±5.838% ▼
Body4%62%66%64.6%±12.80% ▼
T49%72%75%73.0%±5.562% ▲

Optimal v Marcos Baghdatis: +0.3±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +5.1 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowAndreas winsv MarcosMatchupOptimal
Wide49%72%71%70.4%±5.742% ▼
Body6%55%61%52.7%±13.10% ▼
T45%67%72%66.5%±6.158% ▲

Optimal v Marcos Baghdatis: +0.6±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +2.8 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Marcos Baghdatis serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowMarcos winsv AndreasMatchupOptimal
Wide44%70%72%68.8%±5.635% ▼
Body4%56%64%57.1%±13.10% ▼
T52%79%78%81.2%±4.665% ▲

Optimal v Andreas Seppi: +0.2±0.6 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +6.4 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowMarcos winsv AndreasMatchupOptimal
Wide47%77%79%81.8%±4.660% ▲
Body5%54%65%56.6%±13.60% ▼
T49%72%75%75.2%±5.440% ▼

Optimal v Andreas Seppi: +0.5±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +4.3 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.

Andreas Seppi returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MarcosValue
FH through the middle50%+4.3+0.8−0.1+5.0±2.4
FH down the line21%+1.7−0.7+2.7+3.8±4.2
FH crosscourt19%+5.5−0.1−5.0+0.4±4.2
FH slice through the middle5%−4.2−0.8+2.8−2.2±2.3
FH slice down the line2%−4.3−3.1+2.0−5.4±2.8

Lean FH through the middle: +1.9±1.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (470 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MarcosValue
BH through the middle34%+6.4±0.0−0.9+5.6±2.5
BH slice through the middle25%−4.2−2.3+1.9−4.6±2.3
BH crosscourt18%+8.8+1.4+1.6+11.8±3.5
BH slice crosscourt8%+0.5−1.5+1.8+0.8±3.0
BH slice down the line8%−8.4−1.8+1.2−9.0±3.4

Lean BH crosscourt: +9.3±3.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (479 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MarcosValue
FH through the middle50%−3.5+1.4+0.3−1.7±2.8
FH down the line28%−1.8−0.1+1.7−0.2±4.6
FH crosscourt22%−0.2−1.0+4.5+3.2±4.3

Lean FH crosscourt: +3.5±3.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (127 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MarcosValue
BH through the middle43%−2.9−0.3+0.9−2.2±2.1
BH crosscourt37%+1.0+2.2+0.7+4.0±2.7
BH down the line13%−0.2+2.4+0.5+2.8±4.8
BH slice through the middle2%−11.3−2.1+0.6−12.7±2.0
FH inside-in2%+0.6−0.5+4.5+4.5±3.7

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.4±2.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (338 returns charted)

Marcos Baghdatis returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv AndreasValue
FH through the middle33%+4.3+3.3+1.9+9.4±2.4
FH slice through the middle22%−4.2+2.2−1.3−3.4±2.2
FH down the line21%+1.7+1.1−1.5+1.4±4.1
FH slice down the line10%−4.3+1.1±0.0−3.2±2.7
FH crosscourt9%+5.5−0.9+0.8+5.4±4.3

Lean FH through the middle: +6.7±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (539 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv AndreasValue
BH through the middle41%+6.4+0.6−1.2+5.7±2.3
BH crosscourt25%+8.8+2.6+6.1+17.5±3.3
BH down the line16%+4.2+3.5+1.9+9.5±4.6
BH slice through the middle10%−4.2−2.4+0.2−6.4±2.4
BH slice crosscourt4%+0.5+0.3+1.3+2.2±2.9

Lean BH crosscourt: +10.0±2.8 per 100 returns v the current mix (528 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv AndreasValue
FH through the middle54%−3.5+0.6−1.0−3.8±2.8
FH down the line36%−1.8−0.4+3.1+1.0±4.7
FH crosscourt10%−0.2+0.7+1.3+1.8±3.9

Lean FH down the line: +2.5±3.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (112 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv AndreasValue
BH through the middle44%−2.9+0.6+1.2−1.1±2.1
BH crosscourt33%+1.0+0.9+1.4+3.3±2.9
BH down the line19%−0.2+2.7+2.9+5.5±5.0
FH through the middle4%−2.9−0.8−1.0−4.7±2.1

Lean BH down the line: +4.0±4.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (324 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

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.

Andreas Seppi

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · return+4.6±5.6+0.9+3.7
FH to their forehand · return +1+4.4±5.9+3.3+1.2
FH to their backhand · serve +1+3.8±4.8+0.5+3.3
BH to their backhand · return +1+3.7±5.0+2.6+1.1
BH to the middle · return +1+3.6±3.6+2.0+1.6
BH to their forehand · serve +1+3.0±5.7+1.7+1.3

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · return +1−5.1±5.9+1.6−6.6
BH slice to their forehand · rally−4.3±4.2−3.2−1.1
FH to their forehand · serve +1−3.7±5.3−3.4−0.3
FH to their backhand · rally−3.0±4.3−1.7−1.3
BH to their forehand · rally−1.8±5.5−0.1−1.7

Marcos Baghdatis

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their backhand · return+8.1±4.8+2.8+5.4
FH to their backhand · return +1+5.6±5.7+2.7+3.0
FH to the middle · return+5.2±3.7+2.6+2.5
FH to their forehand · serve +1+4.6±5.3+3.1+1.6
BH to their forehand · return+3.7±5.4+0.8+2.9
BH to the middle · return +1+2.8±3.5+2.6+0.2

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · serve +1−4.6±3.7−2.2−2.3
BH to their forehand · rally−4.0±5.1−2.7−1.3
FH to their backhand · rally−2.8±4.3−1.1−1.7
FH to their forehand · return +1−2.0±5.8−1.0−1.0
FH to the middle · rally−1.6±3.4−1.6+0.1

Against Marcos Baghdatis-like opponents

Andreas Seppi vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–61.2%34.1%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Frances Tiafoe, Jack Draper, Benjamin Bonzi, Richard Gasquet, Otto Virtanen, Andy Murray, Janko Tipsarevic, David Nalbandian, Marat Safin. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.