RallyIQ

Game plan

Qiang Wang v Katerina Siniakova

Every number combines what Qiang Wang does well with what Katerina Siniakova allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Qiang Wang wins, best of 3 38%90%: 12%–71% · best of 5: 35%
Serve points won 54.3% / 56.6% Qiang / Katerina · tour 56.3%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 38%serve 54.3% / 56.6%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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

CareerQiangKaterina
Direction choice+0.04 ±0.17
better than 61%
+0.04 ±0.09
better than 63%
Shot selection+0.37 ±0.16
better than 87%
−0.18 ±0.14
better than 30%
Execution+0.03 ±0.80
better than 62%
−0.21 ±0.48
better than 48%
Points left on the table2.24 ±0.25
lower than 90%
2.42 ±0.13
lower than 72%

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.

Qiang Wang serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowQiang winsv KaterinaMatchupOptimal
Wide36%61%68%62.8%±8.151% ▲
Body24%59%56%57.3%±10.39% ▼
T40%65%69%65.8%±8.740%

Optimal v Katerina Siniakova: +0.7±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +3.1 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowQiang winsv KaterinaMatchupOptimal
Wide29%60%69%63.1%±9.744% ▲
Body20%50%58%52.0%±11.319%
T52%52%58%45.3%±7.737% ▼

Optimal v Katerina Siniakova: +1.2±1.0 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving wide every time would read +11.4 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Katerina Siniakova serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowKaterina winsv QiangMatchupOptimal
Wide35%59%61%54.1%±8.635%
Body23%55%55%51.8%±10.48% ▼
T42%59%71%62.8%±9.157% ▲

Optimal v Qiang Wang: +0.7±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +5.6 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowKaterina winsv QiangMatchupOptimal
Wide23%60%64%58.3%±9.623%
Body30%60%63%66.9%±9.615% ▼
T47%63%69%68.3%±7.962% ▲

Optimal v Qiang Wang: +0.6±1.1 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.7 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.

Qiang Wang returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv KaterinaValue
FH through the middle56%+4.2+2.6+1.3+8.1±2.6
FH down the line25%+1.5+2.7+1.9+6.1±4.6
FH crosscourt18%+5.3−0.1+2.2+7.4±4.2

Lean FH through the middle: +0.6±1.8 per 100 returns v the current mix (208 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv KaterinaValue
BH crosscourt41%+7.7+1.0+2.0+10.7±3.5
BH through the middle39%+6.0−0.9+2.8+7.9±2.5
BH down the line9%+2.2−1.3−0.4+0.5±4.1
BH slice crosscourt6%−4.2+0.3−0.7−4.5±2.0
BH slice through the middle6%−6.2±0.0+2.5−3.7±2.2

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.6±2.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (161 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv KaterinaValue
BH crosscourt45%+1.5+0.6+1.0+3.0±3.6
BH through the middle38%−2.6+1.6+1.9+0.9±2.6
BH down the line16%−0.5+1.2+2.2+2.8±4.9

Lean BH crosscourt: +0.9±2.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (104 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

Katerina Siniakova returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv QiangValue
FH through the middle34%+4.2−1.0+0.1+3.3±2.7
FH slice through the middle26%−6.7+1.3−0.3−5.7±2.2
FH crosscourt18%+5.3−2.8+4.1+6.6±4.2
FH slice crosscourt11%−6.6+1.3−0.7−6.1±2.3
FH down the line8%+1.5+1.0+1.6+4.1±4.7

Lean FH crosscourt: +6.4±3.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (630 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv QiangValue
BH through the middle49%+6.0+0.9−1.0+5.9±2.6
BH crosscourt36%+7.7+3.5+3.4+14.6±3.5
BH down the line8%+2.2+0.8−0.3+2.7±4.5
BH slice through the middle5%−6.2−0.8+0.3−6.7±2.0
BH slice crosscourt2%−4.2−1.5−0.4−6.0±2.0

Lean BH crosscourt: +6.7±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (362 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv QiangValue
FH through the middle53%−3.2−1.2−0.3−4.6±3.1
FH crosscourt26%+0.5−2.1+2.3+0.7±4.4
FH down the line21%−0.6+0.1+2.7+2.2±5.1

Lean FH down the line: +4.0±4.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (128 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv QiangValue
BH crosscourt48%+1.5+1.3+1.9+4.7±3.6
BH through the middle32%−2.6+1.3+1.0−0.3±2.8
BH down the line20%−0.5+0.7+6.5+6.7±5.2

Lean BH down the line: +3.2±4.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (155 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.

Qiang Wang

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · return+4.5±2.3+3.4+1.2
BH to their backhand · return+3.6±3.1+1.7+1.9
FH to the middle · serve +1+3.0±2.5+1.8+1.2
BH to the middle · return+2.8±2.2−0.3+3.1
BH to their backhand · rally+1.7±2.3+0.5+1.2
BH to their backhand · serve +1+1.7±3.2+0.2+1.5

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · rally−5.9±3.8−4.2−1.8
FH to their backhand · rally−3.0±2.9−1.8−1.2
FH to their forehand · return−1.6±4.1−1.5−0.1
FH to their forehand · serve +1−1.5±3.5−1.3−0.2
FH to their forehand · return +1−0.3±3.6−0.5+0.2

Katerina Siniakova

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · return+6.2±4.4+1.6+4.7
BH to their backhand · return+6.2±3.1+2.5+3.6
BH to their backhand · rally+3.9±2.2+1.6+2.3
BH to their backhand · serve +1+3.7±3.2−0.3+4.1
BH to their backhand · return +1+3.6±3.2+2.3+1.3
FH to their forehand · return+3.0±4.0−1.4+4.4

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to the middle · serve +1−1.7±2.6−1.4−0.3
FH to the middle · rally−1.2±2.1−2.1+0.9
BH to the middle · return +1−0.8±2.5−0.9+0.1
FH to their backhand · rally−0.7±2.9−3.3+2.6
FH to their forehand · rally−0.5±2.3−0.6+0.2

Against Katerina Siniakova-like opponents

Qiang Wang vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–50.4%40.5%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Ashlyn Krueger, Jessica Pegula, Rebecca Sramkova, Jaqueline Cristian, Shuai Zhang, R, Simona Halep, Tsvetana Pironkova, Kate Makarova. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.