RallyIQ

Game plan

Miomir Kecmanovic v Gustavo Kuerten

Every number combines what Miomir Kecmanovic does well with what Gustavo Kuerten allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Miomir Kecmanovic wins, best of 3 40%90%: 13%–72% · best of 5: 37%
Serve points won 65.5% / 67.7% Miomir / Gustavo · tour 65.7%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 40%serve 65.5% / 67.7%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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

CareerMiomirGustavo
Direction choice−0.06 ±0.09
better than 43%
+0.16 ±0.05
better than 89%
Shot selection−0.28 ±0.10
better than 25%
−0.12 ±0.12
better than 37%
Execution+1.00 ±0.38
better than 95%
+0.04 ±0.26
better than 71%
Points left on the table2.31 ±0.15
lower than 84%
2.48 ±0.10
lower than 64%

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.

Miomir Kecmanovic serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowMiomir winsv GustavoMatchupOptimal
Wide41%68%74%68.9%±4.142%
Body16%61%61%58.4%±8.02% ▼
T43%73%73%71.3%±4.456% ▲

Optimal v Gustavo Kuerten: +0.8±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving T every time would read +3.0 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowMiomir winsv GustavoMatchupOptimal
Wide45%71%71%70.0%±4.258% ▲
Body14%65%70%71.7%±8.01% ▼
T41%68%73%69.6%±4.541%

Optimal v Gustavo Kuerten: +0.4±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving body every time would read +1.6 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Gustavo Kuerten serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowGustavo winsv MiomirMatchupOptimal
Wide42%78%76%80.2%±3.333% ▼
Body5%62%58%56.7%±9.70% ▼
T54%80%80%84.2%±3.067% ▲

Optimal v Miomir Kecmanovic: +0.7±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving T every time would read +2.9 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowGustavo winsv MiomirMatchupOptimal
Wide64%75%73%75.1%±3.755% ▼
Body4%63%58%58.3%±10.10% ▼
T32%77%73%77.7%±4.245% ▲

Optimal v Miomir Kecmanovic: +0.3±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.4 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.

Miomir Kecmanovic returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv GustavoValue
FH through the middle51%+4.3+2.7−3.1+3.8±2.0
FH crosscourt21%+5.5+0.3−3.0+2.8±3.7
FH down the line13%+1.7+4.3−4.1+1.9±4.0
FH slice through the middle10%−4.2−0.1+1.1−3.2±2.3
FH slice down the line3%−4.3−0.3−0.6−5.1±3.1

Lean FH through the middle: +1.6±1.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (845 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv GustavoValue
BH crosscourt37%+8.8+3.2−2.5+9.5±2.6
BH through the middle35%+6.4+1.6−3.3+4.6±2.0
BH slice through the middle13%−4.2−0.2+1.3−3.2±2.0
BH slice crosscourt9%+0.5+0.5−1.0±0.0±2.7
BH down the line5%+4.2+0.7−1.8+3.1±4.4

Lean BH crosscourt: +4.8±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (721 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv GustavoValue
FH through the middle56%−3.5+0.6−0.2−3.1±2.5
FH crosscourt28%−0.2+2.8+0.2+2.9±4.0
FH down the line16%−1.8+1.1+0.2−0.5±4.1

Lean FH crosscourt: +3.8±3.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (172 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv GustavoValue
BH crosscourt46%+1.0+2.0−0.3+2.7±2.1
BH through the middle42%−2.9+1.8−0.6−1.7±1.7
BH down the line6%−0.2+0.5+1.0+1.3±4.4
FH through the middle3%−2.9+0.9−0.2−2.1±1.9
FH inside-in2%+0.6+2.6+0.2+3.4±3.4

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.2±1.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (550 returns charted)

Gustavo Kuerten returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MiomirValue
FH through the middle43%+4.3−0.9+1.1+4.4±1.8
FH down the line26%+1.7−2.1+1.8+1.4±3.4
FH crosscourt19%+5.5−3.7+4.0+5.8±3.6
FH slice through the middle6%−4.2+0.6+0.5−3.1±2.3
FH slice down the line4%−4.3+1.3+1.0−2.0±3.2

Lean FH crosscourt: +2.6±3.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (1134 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MiomirValue
BH through the middle28%+6.4−0.6+2.4+8.3±1.8
BH crosscourt23%+8.8−2.6+1.4+7.6±2.6
BH slice through the middle22%−4.2−1.4+0.9−4.7±2.0
BH slice crosscourt10%+0.5−3.7−0.8−3.9±2.9
BH down the line9%+4.2−1.5−0.5+2.2±4.4

Lean BH through the middle: +6.0±1.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (1292 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MiomirValue
FH through the middle37%−3.5+0.4−0.1−3.2±2.3
FH crosscourt32%−0.2−1.2+3.3+1.8±4.0
FH down the line29%−1.8−0.7+3.7+1.2±4.4
BH through the middle2%+0.1+0.4+0.3+0.8±1.3

Lean FH crosscourt: +2.1±3.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (377 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv MiomirValue
BH through the middle41%−2.9+0.9+0.3−1.7±1.5
BH crosscourt37%+1.0+0.9+0.4+2.3±2.2
BH down the line13%−0.2−1.4+0.1−1.5±4.4
FH through the middle4%−2.9±0.0−0.1−3.0±2.1
FH inside-out2%+1.0−1.5+3.7+3.1±3.5
FH inside-in2%+0.6−0.5+3.3+3.4±4.0

Lean FH inside-in: +3.5±4.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (1272 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.

Miomir Kecmanovic

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH slice to their backhand · return+5.0±3.8+3.6+1.4
FH to their forehand · serve +1+4.9±3.8+4.1+0.8
BH to their backhand · return+4.2±4.3+5.0−0.8
BH to their forehand · serve +1+3.9±5.2+1.6+2.3
FH to their backhand · return+3.8±5.2+2.7+1.2
BH to the middle · serve +1+3.5±2.8+2.9+0.6

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH volley to their forehand · rally−4.9±5.7−5.4+0.5
FH slice to their backhand · rally−3.2±3.8−0.1−3.0
BH slice to the middle · rally−2.6±2.5−1.5−1.1
BH slice to their forehand · rally−1.7±3.2−0.3−1.3
BH to their backhand · rally−1.6±3.6−1.1−0.6

Gustavo Kuerten

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1+7.4±4.5−0.6+8.0
BH to their forehand · serve +1+5.9±5.5+3.5+2.4
FH to their forehand · serve +1+5.8±4.8−0.8+6.6
BH to the middle · serve +1+4.0±3.2+1.8+2.2
BH slice to the middle · return +1+3.2±2.3+1.4+1.8
FH to their forehand · return+3.2±5.5−4.1+7.3

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · return−7.8±5.6−6.4−1.5
FH to their backhand · rally−5.8±4.1−6.8+1.0
BH slice to their backhand · return +1−3.2±3.2−2.1−1.0
BH to their backhand · rally−2.7±3.5−1.5−1.2
BH slice to their forehand · rally−2.0±4.1−4.2+2.2

Against Gustavo Kuerten-like opponents

Miomir Kecmanovic vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–62.7%35.0%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Flavio Cobolli, Sebastian Korda, David Goffin, Paul Henri Mathieu, David Nalbandian, Ivan Ljubicic, Marat Safin, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Wayne Ferreira, Marcelo Rios. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.