RallyIQ

Game plan

Elina Avanesyan v Tatjana Maria

Every number combines what Elina Avanesyan does well with what Tatjana Maria allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Elina Avanesyan wins, best of 3 28%90%: 6%–66% · best of 5: 23%
Serve points won 54.3% / 58.8% Elina / Tatjana · tour 58.1%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 28%serve 54.3% / 58.8%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Elina Avanesyan's record against Tatjana Maria'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

CareerElinaTatjana
Direction choice−0.13 ±0.11
better than 30%
+0.17 ±0.11
better than 82%
Shot selection−0.05 ±0.13
better than 40%
−4.80 ±0.55
better than 0%
Execution+0.98 ±0.49
better than 91%
+1.80 ±0.44
better than 98%
Points left on the table2.53 ±0.14
lower than 62%
3.32 ±0.20
lower than 3%

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.

Structural compatibility

Expected edge per 100 rally shots from style alone: Elina Avanesyan −2.00, Tatjana Maria +2.68. Each player's shot mix weighted by their own skill with each shot and by how much the other gives up against it. This is why some rankings gaps don't hold in a given matchup.

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.

Elina Avanesyan serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowElina winsv TatjanaMatchupOptimal
Wide46%56%61%50.7%±8.131% ▼
Body28%54%61%57.2%±9.129%
T25%56%66%54.0%±9.140% ▲

Optimal v Tatjana Maria: +0.4±1.0 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving body every time would read +3.8 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowElina winsv TatjanaMatchupOptimal
Wide53%62%58%54.3%±7.869% ▲
Body26%57%58%59.0%±9.222% ▼
T20%59%56%50.1%±10.19% ▼

Optimal v Tatjana Maria: +0.2±1.0 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving body every time would read +4.3 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Tatjana Maria serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowTatjana winsv ElinaMatchupOptimal
Wide38%70%65%68.4%±7.154% ▲
Body14%60%62%64.2%±10.70% ▼
T47%75%69%75.9%±7.146% ▼

Optimal v Elina Avanesyan: +0.7±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +4.5 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowTatjana winsv ElinaMatchupOptimal
Wide24%74%62%71.7%±8.726% ▲
Body11%54%61%59.7%±12.10% ▼
T65%68%67%70.6%±7.274% ▲

Optimal v Elina Avanesyan: +0.5±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +2.0 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.

Elina Avanesyan returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv TatjanaValue
FH through the middle56%+4.2+4.7−0.1+8.7±2.7
FH down the line20%+1.5+0.7−6.0−3.8±4.6
FH crosscourt14%+5.3+0.4+0.4+6.1±4.4
FH slice through the middle6%−6.7−0.6±0.0−7.3±2.4
FH slice crosscourt3%−6.6−2.3−2.5−11.4±2.2

Lean FH through the middle: +4.7±1.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (309 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv TatjanaValue
BH through the middle44%+6.0+3.3−2.0+7.4±2.7
BH crosscourt36%+7.7+3.7−2.5+9.0±3.6
BH down the line16%+2.2+0.7−6.2−3.3±4.7
BH slice down the line2%−12.5+0.5−0.4−12.4±2.2
BH slice through the middle2%−6.2+1.0+0.3−5.0±2.1

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.4±2.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (260 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv TatjanaValue
FH through the middle51%−3.2+2.6+0.4−0.2±2.9
FH down the line34%−0.6+4.2−0.1+3.6±5.0
FH crosscourt15%+0.5+0.7+3.2+4.5±3.9

Lean FH down the line: +1.8±3.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (65 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv TatjanaValue
BH through the middle40%−2.6+1.0+2.2+0.6±2.7
BH crosscourt38%+1.5+0.6±0.0+2.1±3.6
BH down the line22%−0.5+2.3−1.1+0.7±5.1

Lean BH crosscourt: +0.9±2.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (113 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

Tatjana Maria returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ElinaValue
FH slice through the middle44%−6.7+3.5+0.1−3.2±2.3
FH slice crosscourt19%−6.6+4.2+1.6−0.9±2.5
FH through the middle14%+4.2−3.2+1.9+2.8±2.9
FH crosscourt11%+5.3+0.7+1.9+7.9±4.2
FH slice down the line9%−10.5+3.7±0.0−6.8±2.3

Lean FH crosscourt: +8.7±3.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (254 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ElinaValue
BH slice through the middle46%−6.2+4.6+1.5−0.1±2.2
BH slice crosscourt31%−4.2+3.2±0.0−1.0±2.0
BH slice down the line9%−12.5+3.9±0.0−8.6±2.5
BH through the middle8%+6.0−1.0+1.9+6.9±2.6
BH crosscourt4%+7.7+0.9+2.1+10.8±3.3

Lean BH crosscourt: +10.8±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (356 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ElinaValue
FH slice through the middle33%−15.2+3.0±0.0−12.2±1.8
FH crosscourt25%+0.5−0.4+3.0+3.1±4.3
FH through the middle16%−3.2−0.3+2.8−0.7±2.8
FH slice crosscourt14%−14.9+1.4±0.0−13.5±1.6
FH slice down the line12%−14.1+1.2±0.0−12.9±1.9

Lean FH crosscourt: +9.9±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (76 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv ElinaValue
BH slice through the middle34%−11.7+1.2±0.0−10.4±1.7
BH slice crosscourt30%−7.5+0.2±0.0−7.3±2.1
BH through the middle7%−2.6−0.5+1.4−1.7±2.6
BH slice down the line7%−10.6+4.5±0.0−6.1±2.6
BH down the line6%−0.5−1.3−2.6−4.4±4.8

Lean BH through the middle: +4.4±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (202 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.

Elina Avanesyan

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · return+6.3±3.9+7.0−0.7
FH to their backhand · return +1+1.7±5.8+2.6−1.0
BH to their backhand · return +1+1.0±5.2+4.0−3.0
FH to their forehand · return−0.1±6.3−0.3+0.2
BH to the middle · return−0.4±3.8−0.2−0.2
BH to their forehand · return +1−0.4±6.4+1.9−2.3

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1−9.8±5.7−2.8−7.0
BH to their forehand · return−5.4±6.4+1.5−6.9
BH to their backhand · rally−5.2±4.4+1.3−6.5
BH to their backhand · serve +1−5.0±5.3−0.3−4.8
FH to their forehand · rally−4.8±4.7+0.2−5.0

Tatjana Maria

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their forehand · serve +1+7.0±5.0+0.8+6.2
FH to their forehand · return+6.4±5.4+1.3+5.2
FH to their backhand · serve +1+6.1±5.9+1.8+4.3
BH slice to the middle · rally+1.1±3.1+1.7−0.6
FH to their forehand · rally+1.0±4.7+1.2−0.2
FH to the middle · rally+1.0±3.2+0.5+0.4

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · rally−0.1±4.7−0.9+0.8
FH to the middle · return+0.9±4.2−5.4+6.4
FH to the middle · rally+1.0±3.2+0.5+0.4
FH to their forehand · rally+1.0±4.7+1.2−0.2
BH slice to the middle · rally+1.1±3.1+1.7−0.6

Against Tatjana Maria-like opponents

Elina Avanesyan vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–51.6%42.3%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Karolina Muchova, Viktorija Golubic, Diane Parry, Alison Van Uytvanck, Kirsten Flipkens, Ashleigh Barty, Francesca Schiavone, Roberta Vinci, Justine Henin, Amelie Mauresmo. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.