RallyIQ

Game plan

Caty Mcnally v Rebecca Marino

Every number combines what Caty Mcnally does well with what Rebecca Marino allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Caty Mcnally wins, best of 3 21%90%: 5%–54% · best of 5: 16%
Serve points won 54.7% / 60.8% Caty / Rebecca · tour 56.3%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 25%serve 55.3% / 60.5%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Caty Mcnally's record against Rebecca Marino's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: −7.2 on serve, −6.4 on return vs expectation (218 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

CareerCatyRebecca
Direction choice−0.32 ±0.11
better than 5%
−0.18 ±0.10
better than 20%
Shot selection+0.05 ±0.33
better than 50%
+0.03 ±0.15
better than 48%
Execution−0.93 ±0.98
better than 20%
−0.84 ±0.52
better than 23%
Points left on the table3.33 ±0.16
lower than 2%
2.70 ±0.11
lower than 33%

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.

Caty Mcnally serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowCaty winsv RebeccaMatchupOptimal
Wide43%63%63%60.1%±8.159% ▲
Body19%60%55%58.1%±10.918%
T38%62%65%59.3%±10.423% ▼

Optimal v Rebecca Marino: +0.5±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +0.7 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowCaty winsv RebeccaMatchupOptimal
Wide33%57%63%53.8%±10.738% ▲
Body20%51%52%47.7%±11.44% ▼
T48%58%65%59.3%±8.658% ▲

Optimal v Rebecca Marino: +0.2±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +4.1 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Rebecca Marino serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowRebecca winsv CatyMatchupOptimal
Wide45%65%66%65.1%±8.760% ▲
Body11%65%52%59.6%±13.30% ▼
T44%75%61%68.5%±9.340% ▼

Optimal v Caty Mcnally: +0.8±1.0 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.5 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowRebecca winsv CatyMatchupOptimal
Wide48%77%67%78.2%±7.455% ▲
Body10%56%65%65.3%±13.60% ▼
T42%72%73%78.6%±7.145% ▲

Optimal v Caty Mcnally: +0.7±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +1.5 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.

Caty Mcnally returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RebeccaValue
FH slice through the middle27%−6.7+1.1−0.1−5.7±2.6
FH through the middle25%+4.2−1.9+1.3+3.5±3.0
FH crosscourt20%+5.3−3.8−3.9−2.3±4.4
FH down the line14%+1.5+1.0−3.0−0.5±4.6
FH slice crosscourt10%−6.6+1.1−0.8−6.3±2.4

Lean FH through the middle: +5.8±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (180 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RebeccaValue
BH through the middle52%+6.0−0.2−1.9+4.0±2.8
BH crosscourt21%+7.7−0.8−2.6+4.3±3.7
BH down the line11%+2.2+1.2−2.0+1.4±4.4
BH slice through the middle7%−6.2+0.5−0.8−6.5±2.2
BH slice down the line5%−12.5−1.8±0.0−14.3±1.8

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.5±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (177 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RebeccaValue
FH through the middle54%−3.2−2.0+0.1−5.1±3.0
FH crosscourt22%+0.5+1.9+0.5+2.9±3.9
FH down the line13%−0.6−1.0−1.9−3.4±4.4
FH slice through the middle11%−15.2+0.1±0.0−15.1±1.1

Lean FH through the middle: −0.9±1.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (54 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RebeccaValue
BH through the middle47%−2.6+1.7+1.3+0.5±2.6
BH crosscourt32%+1.5+2.2+0.7+4.3±3.6
FH through the middle9%−2.7+1.0+0.1−1.5±2.3
FH inside-in6%+0.7−0.3+0.5+0.9±3.8
FH inside-out6%+1.4+0.4−1.9−0.1±3.4

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.8±2.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (87 returns charted)

Rebecca Marino returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv CatyValue
FH through the middle61%+4.2−0.1−0.5+3.5±2.7
FH crosscourt20%+5.3−2.3+1.3+4.4±4.4
FH down the line18%+1.5−0.2+0.5+1.8±4.7
FH slice through the middle1%−6.7−1.4−0.8−8.9±2.0

Lean FH crosscourt: +1.1±3.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (337 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv CatyValue
BH through the middle49%+6.0−0.1+0.9+6.9±2.7
BH crosscourt26%+7.7+3.8+3.1+14.6±3.7
BH down the line12%+2.2−1.3+2.9+3.8±4.6
BH slice through the middle7%−6.2−1.5−0.1−7.9±2.2
BH slice crosscourt6%−4.2−0.7+0.4−4.5±2.1

Lean BH crosscourt: +7.7±3.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (198 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv CatyValue
FH through the middle57%−3.2+1.8+0.9−0.5±3.1
FH crosscourt35%+0.5+2.1−0.6+2.0±4.2
FH down the line9%−0.6−1.7+1.1−1.2±4.4

Lean FH crosscourt: +1.7±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (69 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv CatyValue
BH through the middle47%−2.6+1.6−1.4−2.4±2.8
BH crosscourt41%+1.5+0.4−0.1+1.8±3.5
BH down the line12%−0.5+1.0+1.9+2.4±4.6

Lean BH crosscourt: +1.9±2.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (93 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.

Caty Mcnally

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · return +1+2.4±2.7+1.9+0.5
BH to the middle · serve +1+2.2±2.5+1.7+0.6
FH to the middle · serve +1+2.2±2.5+1.3+0.9
FH to the middle · rally+1.9±2.1+0.9+1.0
FH to their forehand · serve +1+1.1±4.2+2.1−1.0
FH to their forehand · rally+0.4±3.0+0.9−0.5

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · rally−5.2±4.6−2.8−2.4
BH to the middle · return−1.5±2.3±0.0−1.5
FH to the middle · return−1.5±2.7−1.9+0.5
BH to their backhand · rally−1.4±3.3+0.4−1.9
FH to their backhand · serve +1−0.6±4.0−0.2−0.4

Rebecca Marino

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their backhand · return+4.7±3.5+1.7+3.0
BH to the middle · return +1+2.1±2.5±0.0+2.1
BH to their forehand · return+2.0±4.6−1.7+3.6
FH to the middle · return+1.7±2.4+1.6+0.1
BH to the middle · serve +1+1.2±2.7+0.6+0.6
FH to their backhand · return+0.6±4.3−0.3+0.9

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · rally−4.4±2.2−4.2−0.2
FH to their backhand · rally−3.5±3.3−3.5±0.0
FH to their forehand · rally−3.3±2.9−1.7−1.6
BH to their backhand · serve +1−2.9±3.8−3.3+0.4
BH to their forehand · rally−2.3±4.3−2.6+0.2

Against Rebecca Marino-like opponents

Caty Mcnally vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–52.4%39.3%
Players most similar to Rebecca Marino2 46.7%31.3%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Elena Rybakina, Barbora Krejcikova, Maya Joint, Shuai Zhang, Robin Montgomery, Veronika Kudermetova, Bernarda Pera, Irina Camelia Begu, Anett Kontaveit, Coco Vandeweghe. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.