RallyIQ

Game plan

Arthur Cazaux v Hugo Gaston

Every number combines what Arthur Cazaux does well with what Hugo Gaston allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Arthur Cazaux wins, best of 3 29%90%: 7%–63% · best of 5: 24%
Serve points won 59.9% / 64.3% Arthur / Hugo · tour 61.3%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 32%serve 60.2% / 64.0%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Arthur Cazaux's record against Hugo Gaston's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: −2.8 on serve, −3.1 on return vs expectation (403 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

CareerArthurHugo
Direction choice−0.18 ±0.16
better than 17%
−0.07 ±0.15
better than 39%
Shot selection−0.06 ±0.30
better than 47%
−0.41 ±0.24
better than 16%
Execution+0.04 ±0.45
better than 72%
−0.58 ±0.52
better than 42%
Points left on the table2.87 ±0.20
lower than 26%
3.11 ±0.27
lower than 15%

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.

Arthur Cazaux serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowArthur winsv HugoMatchupOptimal
Wide46%72%68%68.0%±8.559% ▲
Body5%60%54%50.0%±16.20% ▼
T49%78%75%77.7%±7.541% ▼

Optimal v Hugo Gaston: +0.3±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +5.7 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowArthur winsv HugoMatchupOptimal
Wide54%72%79%78.1%±7.367% ▲
Body3%69%60%66.2%±15.73%
T43%71%73%72.2%±8.930% ▼

Optimal v Hugo Gaston: +0.5±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +2.9 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Hugo Gaston serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowHugo winsv ArthurMatchupOptimal
Wide41%69%73%69.4%±8.941%
Body16%66%66%68.8%±13.53% ▼
T43%67%79%71.5%±8.756% ▲

Optimal v Arthur Cazaux: +0.1±1.0 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +1.3 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowHugo winsv ArthurMatchupOptimal
Wide67%72%75%74.3%±7.661% ▼
Body7%66%65%67.7%±15.40% ▼
T26%75%80%81.9%±8.139% ▲

Optimal v Arthur Cazaux: +0.5±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +6.1 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.

Arthur Cazaux returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv HugoValue
FH through the middle43%+4.3±0.0−1.9+2.4±3.0
FH down the line28%+1.7−3.8−3.4−5.6±4.4
FH slice through the middle14%−4.2−0.9+0.4−4.7±2.2
FH crosscourt9%+5.5−3.4−1.0+1.1±4.3
FH slice down the line5%−4.3+0.5±0.0−3.7±1.8

Lean FH through the middle: +3.7±2.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (243 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv HugoValue
BH through the middle41%+6.4+1.0+2.1+9.5±2.6
BH crosscourt24%+8.8−0.7−1.3+6.7±3.6
BH down the line14%+4.2−2.9±0.0+1.3±4.5
BH slice through the middle12%−4.2−1.6+0.6−5.3±2.3
BH slice crosscourt6%+0.5−2.1+1.5−0.1±2.5

Lean BH through the middle: +4.8±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (204 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv HugoValue
FH through the middle53%−3.5+1.3−0.5−2.7±2.8
FH down the line37%−1.8+0.1+1.3−0.3±4.5
FH crosscourt10%−0.2−2.8−1.6−4.6±3.7

Lean FH down the line: +1.7±3.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (60 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv HugoValue
BH through the middle53%−2.9+1.2−0.1−1.8±2.5
BH crosscourt34%+1.0−1.3−0.5−0.8±3.3
BH down the line8%−0.2−1.5+2.3+0.6±4.4
FH through the middle5%−2.9+0.6−0.5−2.8±2.1

Lean BH crosscourt: +0.5±2.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (172 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

Hugo Gaston returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ArthurValue
FH through the middle43%+4.3+0.5−2.8+1.9±3.0
FH crosscourt19%+5.5−4.2−1.8−0.4±4.3
FH slice through the middle17%−4.2−0.5+0.7−4.0±2.3
FH down the line16%+1.7−2.1+1.5+1.1±4.4
FH slice crosscourt5%−4.3−0.1−1.0−5.4±2.1

Lean FH through the middle: +2.0±2.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (152 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ArthurValue
BH through the middle39%+6.4−1.1−2.0+3.4±2.8
BH crosscourt34%+8.8−3.4−1.2+4.2±3.5
BH slice through the middle13%−4.2−1.4+0.1−5.5±2.3
BH down the line9%+4.2−1.4+1.6+4.4±4.3
BH slice crosscourt4%+0.5−1.4±0.0−0.8±1.4

Lean BH down the line: +2.0±4.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (180 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ArthurValue
FH through the middle44%−3.5+0.4−0.1−3.3±2.9
FH crosscourt37%−0.2+0.1+1.0+0.9±4.3
FH down the line13%−1.8−1.2+1.9−1.0±4.2
FH slice crosscourt6%−12.5±0.0+0.3−12.2±1.9

Lean FH crosscourt: +2.8±3.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (84 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ArthurValue
BH through the middle55%−2.9−1.4−0.2−4.5±2.5
BH crosscourt38%+1.0−0.8+0.2+0.4±3.2
BH down the line8%−0.2−1.0+0.3−0.9±4.0

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.8±2.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (80 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 clay. Each player's clay record is shrunk toward their all-surface one, so a thin sample on it moves the numbers only a little.

Arthur Cazaux

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to the middle · return+3.5±3.1+0.5+3.1
FH to their backhand · return +1+3.4±5.5+1.2+2.2
FH to the middle · rally+0.6±3.3+1.8−1.1
BH to their forehand · serve +1+0.4±6.9−2.2+2.7
BH to their forehand · rally+0.3±5.6−3.4+3.7
BH to their backhand · rally+0.3±4.0+1.1−0.7

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · return−6.7±5.2−3.1−3.6
FH to their forehand · return +1−5.7±6.2−3.4−2.3
BH to the middle · rally−4.5±3.2−2.0−2.5
FH to their backhand · rally−4.3±3.9−3.6−0.7
FH to their backhand · serve +1−3.1±4.8−1.3−1.9

Hugo Gaston

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · rally+7.4±4.0+3.4+4.1
FH to their backhand · serve +1+5.4±5.0+3.8+1.6
FH to their backhand · return +1+4.8±5.6+1.5+3.3
FH to their forehand · serve +1+4.1±5.7+2.5+1.6
FH to their forehand · rally+3.0±4.8+0.7+2.2
BH to their forehand · rally+2.3±5.6−1.2+3.5

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their backhand · rally−6.5±4.0−7.0+0.5
BH to the middle · return−4.7±3.3−1.7−3.0
FH to the middle · return−4.3±3.7−0.9−3.4
BH to the middle · rally−3.4±3.0−2.8−0.6
BH to their backhand · serve +1+1.3±4.9−1.3+2.6

Against Hugo Gaston-like opponents

Arthur Cazaux vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–62.6%31.5%
Players most similar to Hugo Gaston3 61.7%29.9%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Bublik, Luciano Darderi, Pedro Martinez, Yannick Hanfmann, Mattia Bellucci, Benoit Paire, Marco Cecchinato, Gustavo Kuerten, Gaston Gaudio. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.