Game plan
Reilly Opelka v John Isner
Every number combines what Reilly Opelka does well with what John Isner allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective
Forecast
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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Reilly Opelka's record against John Isner's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: −3.6 on serve, −3.3 on return vs expectation (550 points); head-to-head: +7.8 on serve, −3.3 on return vs expectation (571 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
| Career | Reilly | John |
|---|---|---|
| Direction choice | −0.19 ±0.11 better than 16% | −0.13 ±0.05 better than 25% |
| Shot selection | +0.14 ±0.11 better than 69% | +0.62 ±0.09 better than 96% |
| Execution | −1.23 ±0.68 better than 18% | −0.90 ±0.33 better than 28% |
| Points left on the table | 2.88 ±0.20 lower than 25% | 2.98 ±0.11 lower than 20% |
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.
Reilly Opelka serving
Deuce court
| 1st serve | Now | Reilly wins | v John | Matchup | Optimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide | 50% | 77% | 79% | 82.0%±2.7 | 46% ▼ |
| Body | 9% | 62% | 76% | 74.6%±5.9 | 0% ▼ |
| T | 41% | 80% | 84% | 88.2%±2.2 | 54% ▲ |
Optimal v John Isner: +1.0±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving T every time would read +4.4 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.
Ad court
| 1st serve | Now | Reilly wins | v John | Matchup | Optimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide | 49% | 82% | 83% | 89.5%±2.0 | 62% ▲ |
| Body | 7% | 61% | 70% | 68.1%±7.7 | 0% ▼ |
| T | 44% | 77% | 80% | 84.2%±2.6 | 38% ▼ |
Optimal v John Isner: +1.0±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving wide every time would read +3.9 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.
John Isner serving
Deuce court
| 1st serve | Now | John wins | v Reilly | Matchup | Optimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide | 52% | 78% | 80% | 84.6%±2.4 | 47% ▼ |
| Body | 9% | 61% | 70% | 67.8%±6.6 | 0% ▼ |
| T | 39% | 78% | 83% | 85.5%±2.7 | 53% ▲ |
Optimal v Reilly Opelka: +1.0±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving T every time would read +2.0 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.
Ad court
| 1st serve | Now | John wins | v Reilly | Matchup | Optimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide | 47% | 80% | 81% | 86.7%±2.4 | 60% ▲ |
| Body | 6% | 66% | 72% | 74.5%±6.8 | 0% ▼ |
| T | 47% | 79% | 80% | 85.6%±2.6 | 40% ▼ |
Optimal v Reilly Opelka: +0.7±0.5 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix. Serving wide every time would read +1.2 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.
Reilly Opelka returning
1st serve to the forehand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v John | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FH through the middle | 41% | +4.3 | −3.8 | −1.7 | −1.2±1.8 |
| FH down the line | 21% | +1.7 | −0.8 | −0.6 | +0.3±3.5 |
| FH slice through the middle | 16% | −4.2 | −2.6 | −1.6 | −8.4±2.0 |
| FH crosscourt | 13% | +5.5 | −1.9 | −1.7 | +1.8±3.7 |
| FH slice down the line | 4% | −4.3 | +1.2 | −1.7 | −4.7±3.1 |
Lean FH crosscourt: +3.7±3.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (809 returns charted)
1st serve to the backhand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v John | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BH through the middle | 57% | +6.4 | −2.2 | −2.2 | +2.1±1.7 |
| BH crosscourt | 24% | +8.8 | −2.2 | −0.1 | +6.5±2.8 |
| BH slice through the middle | 7% | −4.2 | −1.9 | −2.2 | −8.2±2.1 |
| BH down the line | 7% | +4.2 | +2.8 | +1.7 | +8.7±4.4 |
| BH slice crosscourt | 3% | +0.5 | −1.7 | +0.4 | −0.8±2.5 |
Lean BH down the line: +6.2±4.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (713 returns charted)
2nd serve to the forehand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v John | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FH through the middle | 43% | −3.5 | −4.5 | −1.7 | −9.7±2.4 |
| FH down the line | 31% | −1.8 | −4.5 | −1.1 | −7.3±4.4 |
| FH crosscourt | 15% | −0.2 | −5.8 | −2.5 | −8.5±4.3 |
| FH slice through the middle | 6% | −12.7 | +0.1 | −1.0 | −13.6±2.2 |
| BH through the middle | 3% | +0.1 | −0.5 | −3.1 | −3.5±1.2 |
Lean FH down the line: +1.5±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (219 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)
2nd serve to the backhand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v John | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BH through the middle | 53% | −2.9 | −2.9 | −3.1 | −8.9±1.7 |
| BH crosscourt | 34% | +1.0 | −3.5 | −1.3 | −3.7±2.5 |
| BH down the line | 9% | −0.2 | −1.5 | −3.8 | −5.6±4.7 |
| FH through the middle | 2% | −2.9 | +0.3 | −1.7 | −4.3±1.8 |
| FH inside-out | 2% | +1.0 | +0.7 | −1.1 | +0.6±3.0 |
Lean BH crosscourt: +2.9±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (482 returns charted)
John Isner returning
1st serve to the forehand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v Reilly | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FH through the middle | 47% | +4.3 | −1.2 | +1.2 | +4.2±1.9 |
| FH down the line | 31% | +1.7 | −1.9 | +4.4 | +4.2±3.6 |
| FH crosscourt | 11% | +5.5 | +0.9 | +1.7 | +8.1±3.9 |
| FH slice through the middle | 5% | −4.2 | +2.2 | −0.3 | −2.3±2.1 |
| FH slice down the line | 4% | −4.3 | +0.6 | −1.9 | −5.5±3.2 |
Lean FH crosscourt: +4.2±3.8 per 100 returns v the current mix (1500 returns charted)
1st serve to the backhand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v Reilly | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BH through the middle | 47% | +6.4 | −3.2 | +0.8 | +4.0±1.7 |
| BH crosscourt | 19% | +8.8 | −2.4 | +0.3 | +6.7±3.0 |
| BH down the line | 14% | +4.2 | −1.8 | −2.0 | +0.4±4.1 |
| BH slice through the middle | 9% | −4.2 | −1.4 | −1.5 | −7.2±2.2 |
| BH slice crosscourt | 7% | +0.5 | −4.8 | −1.8 | −6.1±2.9 |
Lean BH crosscourt: +4.8±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (1608 returns charted)
2nd serve to the forehand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v Reilly | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FH through the middle | 46% | −3.5 | −2.6 | −1.3 | −7.4±2.4 |
| FH down the line | 42% | −1.8 | −4.5 | −0.2 | −6.5±4.4 |
| FH crosscourt | 10% | −0.2 | −5.4 | −0.2 | −5.9±4.4 |
| FH slice through the middle | 2% | −12.7 | −0.4 | −1.7 | −14.7±2.1 |
Lean FH crosscourt: +1.2±4.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (367 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)
2nd serve to the backhand
| Return | Now | Tour | Own | v Reilly | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BH through the middle | 46% | −2.9 | −2.8 | −1.1 | −6.8±1.6 |
| BH crosscourt | 26% | +1.0 | −3.3 | −2.1 | −4.3±2.6 |
| BH down the line | 14% | −0.2 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | −0.3±4.7 |
| FH inside-out | 7% | +1.0 | +1.9 | −0.2 | +2.7±3.7 |
| FH through the middle | 6% | −2.9 | −2.5 | −1.3 | −6.7±2.2 |
Lean FH inside-out: +7.3±3.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (996 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.
Reilly Opelka
Favour
| Shot | Edge | Own | Theirs |
|---|---|---|---|
| BH to their forehand · rally | +2.4±3.3 | −4.8 | +7.1 |
| FH to their forehand · serve +1 | +2.1±2.3 | −2.5 | +4.5 |
| FH to their backhand · serve +1 | ±0.0±2.0 | −2.6 | +2.6 |
| BH to their forehand · serve +1 | −0.1±4.0 | −6.0 | +5.9 |
| FH to the middle · serve +1 | −0.7±1.9 | +0.7 | −1.4 |
| BH to their forehand · return | −1.0±3.5 | +0.3 | −1.2 |
Avoid
| Shot | Edge | Own | Theirs |
|---|---|---|---|
| FH to the middle · return | −6.1±1.4 | −4.7 | −1.4 |
| BH volley to their forehand · rally | −6.0±6.0 | −9.5 | +3.6 |
| BH to the middle · return | −5.8±1.2 | −2.9 | −2.9 |
| FH slice to the middle · return | −5.5±1.8 | −3.0 | −2.5 |
| FH to their forehand · return | −5.4±3.4 | −3.9 | −1.5 |
John Isner
Favour
| Shot | Edge | Own | Theirs |
|---|---|---|---|
| BH to their backhand · return +1 | +2.3±2.8 | −0.5 | +2.9 |
| FH to their forehand · serve +1 | +2.2±2.5 | +0.3 | +1.9 |
| FH slice to the middle · rally | +1.3±3.0 | +2.7 | −1.4 |
| BH to their forehand · return +1 | +1.1±4.5 | −2.7 | +3.8 |
| FH to their forehand · return | +0.6±3.7 | −0.9 | +1.6 |
| FH to their backhand · return | +0.1±3.0 | −3.1 | +3.2 |
Avoid
| Shot | Edge | Own | Theirs |
|---|---|---|---|
| BH to their forehand · serve +1 | −12.0±4.4 | −9.4 | −2.5 |
| BH slice to their backhand · rally | −7.8±1.9 | −5.6 | −2.2 |
| FH to their backhand · rally | −7.2±1.9 | −5.8 | −1.3 |
| BH slice to their backhand · return | −7.1±2.8 | −3.5 | −3.6 |
| BH slice to their backhand · serve +1 | −5.5±2.8 | −2.9 | −2.6 |
Against John Isner-like opponents
| Reilly Opelka v | Matches | Serve pts won | Return pts won |
|---|---|---|---|
| All charted opponents | – | 70.0% | 27.5% |
| Players most similar to John Isner | 4 | 66.5% | 23.7% |
| John Isner (charted head-to-head) | 3 | 81.0% | 21.3% |
Similar by tactical fingerprint: Arthur Rinderknech, Felix Auger Aliassime, Alexei Popyrin, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Nicolas Jarry, Milos Raonic, Jeremy Chardy, Sam Querrey, Lukas Rosol. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.