RallyIQ

Game plan

Linda Fruhvirtova v Lesia Tsurenko

Every number combines what Linda Fruhvirtova does well with what Lesia Tsurenko allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Linda Fruhvirtova wins, best of 3 53%90%: 18%–86% · best of 5: 54%
Serve points won 52.4% / 51.8% Linda / Lesia · tour 55.0%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 54%serve 52.4% / 51.7%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Linda Fruhvirtova's record against Lesia Tsurenko's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: −0.2 on serve, −1.3 on return vs expectation (349 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

CareerLindaLesia
Direction choice+0.10 ±0.09
better than 72%
−0.24 ±0.13
better than 14%
Shot selection−0.11 ±0.11
better than 35%
−0.07 ±0.18
better than 37%
Execution+1.26 ±0.49
better than 95%
+0.30 ±0.65
better than 72%
Points left on the table2.35 ±0.12
lower than 81%
2.55 ±0.10
lower than 59%

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: Linda Fruhvirtova +2.02, Lesia Tsurenko +1.82. 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.

Linda Fruhvirtova serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowLinda winsv LesiaMatchupOptimal
Wide39%67%63%64.0%±7.347% ▲
Body14%63%55%60.6%±10.90% ▼
T47%71%70%73.3%±7.353% ▲

Optimal v Lesia Tsurenko: +0.3±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +5.4 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowLinda winsv LesiaMatchupOptimal
Wide39%68%64%66.3%±8.354% ▲
Body16%52%49%45.2%±10.91% ▼
T45%64%59%58.3%±8.245%

Optimal v Lesia Tsurenko: +1.1±1.2 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +7.1 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Lesia Tsurenko serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowLesia winsv LindaMatchupOptimal
Wide30%62%68%64.3%±8.230%
Body42%51%52%45.0%±8.227% ▼
T28%65%72%69.3%±8.543% ▲

Optimal v Linda Fruhvirtova: +1.0±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +11.8 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowLesia winsv LindaMatchupOptimal
Wide38%59%63%56.3%±8.539%
Body43%49%58%51.0%±9.528% ▼
T18%62%65%62.9%±9.633% ▲

Optimal v Linda Fruhvirtova: +1.0±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +7.7 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.

Linda Fruhvirtova returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LesiaValue
FH through the middle54%+4.2+3.1+0.6+7.9±2.7
FH crosscourt23%+5.3+2.7+1.1+9.1±4.3
FH down the line19%+1.5+1.3+0.4+3.3±4.7
FH slice through the middle2%−6.7+0.5−1.7−7.9±1.8
FH slice crosscourt2%−6.6+0.6±0.0−6.0±1.2

Lean FH crosscourt: +2.4±3.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (331 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LesiaValue
BH crosscourt43%+7.7+1.5+2.0+11.3±3.3
BH through the middle42%+6.0+1.6+0.9+8.5±2.5
BH down the line8%+2.2−2.2+2.3+2.4±4.5
BH slice through the middle4%−6.2+0.2−1.7−7.7±2.1
BH slice crosscourt2%−4.2+0.1−1.1−5.1±1.8

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.0±2.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (272 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LesiaValue
FH through the middle44%−3.2+2.1−2.6−3.7±3.1
FH crosscourt35%+0.5±0.0+2.2+2.7±4.4
FH down the line21%−0.6+2.1+3.2+4.7±5.0

Lean FH down the line: +4.4±4.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (95 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LesiaValue
BH through the middle44%−2.6+0.9−2.4−4.1±2.8
BH crosscourt41%+1.5−0.3+1.8+3.1±3.7
BH down the line15%−0.5−0.2+0.5−0.3±4.8

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.6±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (119 returns charted)

Lesia Tsurenko returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LindaValue
FH through the middle43%+4.2−0.4−1.1+2.7±2.8
FH crosscourt21%+5.3+0.3+2.3+8.0±4.2
FH slice through the middle14%−6.7+1.1+0.4−5.2±2.6
FH down the line13%+1.5+0.2±0.0+1.7±4.7
FH slice down the line5%−10.5−0.8+2.6−8.7±2.8

Lean FH crosscourt: +6.3±3.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (297 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LindaValue
BH through the middle47%+6.0−2.5+0.7+4.1±2.5
BH crosscourt19%+7.7+2.7−2.9+7.5±3.6
BH down the line14%+2.2−0.3+3.4+5.2±4.6
BH slice through the middle12%−6.2−0.2−0.1−6.6±2.3
BH slice crosscourt4%−4.2−0.5−0.7−5.3±2.3

Lean BH crosscourt: +5.0±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (217 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LindaValue
FH through the middle46%−3.2+0.5−0.1−2.7±3.1
FH crosscourt38%+0.5+1.2+6.4+8.2±4.4
FH down the line16%−0.6+0.8−3.8−3.5±4.8

Lean FH crosscourt: +6.9±3.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (92 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv LindaValue
BH through the middle43%−2.6+1.4+1.5+0.3±2.7
BH crosscourt31%+1.5−1.9−0.8−1.2±3.6
BH down the line26%−0.5−1.3+1.9+0.1±5.2

Lean BH through the middle: +0.5±2.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (112 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 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.

Linda Fruhvirtova

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1+8.5±5.2+5.4+3.1
FH to their backhand · rally+7.0±4.3+2.7+4.3
FH to the middle · rally+5.4±3.1+3.1+2.3
BH to their backhand · return+5.2±4.2+2.0+3.3
FH to their forehand · return +1+5.2±5.4+2.9+2.3
FH to their backhand · return+4.8±5.7+3.1+1.7

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to the middle · serve +1−3.3±3.5−4.1+0.7
BH to their backhand · return +1−1.9±4.5−1.0−0.9
FH to the middle · return +1−1.2±3.3−0.7−0.5
FH to the middle · return−0.4±3.4+0.9−1.3
BH to their forehand · rally−0.1±5.4−0.9+0.8

Lesia Tsurenko

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · serve +1+10.5±6.6+4.6+5.9
FH to their forehand · return+7.3±5.8+2.2+5.1
FH to their backhand · rally+7.3±4.3+4.9+2.4
BH to their forehand · return+6.5±6.2+2.0+4.5
BH to their backhand · rally+6.3±4.0+2.8+3.5
BH to the middle · return +1+4.7±3.0+2.1+2.7

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1−4.4±5.3−5.5+1.1
FH to the middle · rally−3.0±3.1−1.8−1.1
BH to their backhand · return−2.9±4.7−0.1−2.8
BH to their forehand · return +1−1.7±6.7−1.5−0.2
FH to their backhand · return−1.4±5.5+2.3−3.6

Against Lesia Tsurenko-like opponents

Linda Fruhvirtova vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–56.2%42.6%
Players most similar to Lesia Tsurenko2 55.6%42.6%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Diana Shnaider, Anna Blinkova, Arantxa Rus, Emma Raducanu, Sara Bejlek, Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, Elina Avanesyan, Madison Brengle, Anna Lena Friedsam, Alison Riske Amritraj. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.