RallyIQ

Game plan

Robin Soderling v Francisco Cerundolo

Every number combines what Robin Soderling does well with what Francisco Cerundolo allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Robin Soderling wins, best of 3 78%90%: 60%–91% · best of 5: 84%
Serve points won 66.2% / 59.9% Robin / Francisco · tour 63.8%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 78%serve 66.2% / 59.9%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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

CareerRobinFrancisco
Direction choice−0.04 ±0.10
better than 45%
+0.11 ±0.06
better than 82%
Shot selection+0.37 ±0.15
better than 84%
+0.26 ±0.12
better than 76%
Execution−0.27 ±0.51
better than 54%
−0.40 ±0.49
better than 48%
Points left on the table2.34 ±0.15
lower than 80%
2.23 ±0.08
lower than 89%

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.

Robin Soderling serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowRobin winsv FranciscoMatchupOptimal
Wide46%72%72%71.7%±4.959% ▲
Body9%66%62%64.8%±10.40% ▼
T45%79%70%74.9%±5.341% ▼

Optimal v Francisco Cerundolo: +0.6±0.7 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.

Ad court

1st serveNowRobin winsv FranciscoMatchupOptimal
Wide48%80%68%75.7%±5.462% ▲
Body7%68%61%66.8%±11.00% ▼
T44%66%67%61.4%±6.338% ▼

Optimal v Francisco Cerundolo: +0.3±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +7.0 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Francisco Cerundolo serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowFrancisco winsv RobinMatchupOptimal
Wide44%65%77%69.5%±5.557% ▲
Body16%61%67%65.0%±10.116%
T40%69%76%70.1%±5.727% ▼

Optimal v Robin Soderling: +0.3±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +1.1 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowFrancisco winsv RobinMatchupOptimal
Wide52%63%78%69.9%±5.452%
Body16%66%65%68.3%±9.93% ▼
T32%67%76%71.6%±6.245% ▲

Optimal v Robin Soderling: +0.6±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +1.4 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.

Robin Soderling returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv FranciscoValue
FH down the line46%+1.7−0.1+4.2+5.8±3.7
FH through the middle44%+4.3+0.9+1.8+6.9±2.3
FH crosscourt7%+5.5−0.5+3.0+8.0±4.0
FH slice through the middle2%−4.2±0.0+0.8−3.4±2.0
FH slice down the line1%−4.3−0.3+1.1−3.5±2.5

Lean FH crosscourt: +1.8±4.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (369 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv FranciscoValue
BH through the middle44%+6.4+0.9+0.7+8.0±2.1
BH down the line21%+4.2−0.2+1.7+5.7±4.5
BH crosscourt20%+8.8+0.2+1.5+10.5±2.9
BH slice through the middle10%−4.2−0.6−0.3−5.1±2.5
BH slice crosscourt3%+0.5+0.3−0.8±0.0±2.8

Lean BH crosscourt: +4.4±2.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (411 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv FranciscoValue
FH through the middle41%−3.5+1.3+1.3−0.9±2.7
FH down the line39%−1.8−5.3−1.0−8.1±4.5
FH crosscourt16%−0.2−1.4+6.4+4.7±4.1
BH inside-out4%+0.9−3.1−2.4−4.6±3.6

Lean FH crosscourt: +7.7±4.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (115 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv FranciscoValue
BH through the middle39%−2.9+0.6+0.2−2.1±2.2
BH down the line30%−0.2−1.0−2.4−3.6±4.9
BH crosscourt28%+1.0+2.1+0.2+3.3±2.8
FH through the middle2%−2.9−0.3+1.3−1.8±1.8

Lean BH crosscourt: +4.3±2.7 per 100 returns v the current mix (266 returns charted)

Francisco Cerundolo returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RobinValue
FH through the middle43%+4.3+0.8+0.3+5.4±2.3
FH crosscourt25%+5.5+0.1−1.3+4.3±4.1
FH down the line15%+1.7−0.4±0.0+1.3±4.3
FH slice through the middle10%−4.2−1.1+0.5−4.8±2.3
FH slice down the line4%−4.3−1.2+0.8−4.6±3.1

Lean FH through the middle: +2.6±1.8 per 100 returns v the current mix (715 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RobinValue
BH through the middle44%+6.4−0.8+0.4+6.0±2.3
BH crosscourt29%+8.8−1.2+0.6+8.3±3.2
BH down the line12%+4.2+3.1+0.3+7.6±4.3
BH slice through the middle7%−4.2−2.6+2.0−4.8±2.3
BH slice crosscourt5%+0.5−1.6±0.0−1.1±3.0

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.9±2.6 per 100 returns v the current mix (857 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RobinValue
FH through the middle47%−3.5+1.8−1.8−3.5±2.8
FH crosscourt35%−0.2+2.4+0.4+2.6±4.4
FH down the line18%−1.8−0.7−0.3−2.8±4.6

Lean FH crosscourt: +3.8±3.3 per 100 returns v the current mix (152 returns charted)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv RobinValue
BH crosscourt38%+1.0−1.2+1.2+1.1±2.8
BH through the middle37%−2.9−1.0−0.1−4.0±2.2
BH down the line7%−0.2−3.7+0.8−3.1±5.0
FH through the middle7%−2.9+1.0−1.8−3.8±2.4
FH inside-out6%+1.0−1.1−0.3−0.4±3.7

Lean BH crosscourt: +2.6±2.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (564 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 hard. Each player's hard record is shrunk toward their all-surface one, so a thin sample on it moves the numbers only a little.

Robin Soderling

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their backhand · return+7.5±3.4+4.0+3.5
FH to the middle · return+4.9±2.8+2.4+2.5
FH to their forehand · return+4.6±6.1−2.8+7.4
FH to their backhand · return+3.9±4.3−2.2+6.0
FH to their forehand · return +1+3.6±5.4+3.2+0.3
BH to the middle · return +1+2.0±3.4+2.3−0.3

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to their forehand · return +1−8.3±6.8−2.3−6.1
FH to their forehand · serve +1−6.9±4.0−4.0−2.9
BH to their forehand · rally−6.3±4.7−2.4−3.9
FH to their backhand · return +1−4.6±4.6−3.7−0.9
FH to their backhand · rally−4.5±2.5−3.1−1.4

Francisco Cerundolo

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · return +1+6.1±5.2+2.2+3.9
FH to their forehand · serve +1+5.7±4.3+2.7+3.0
BH to their forehand · return +1+2.9±7.2+3.3−0.4
BH to their backhand · serve +1+2.2±3.6±0.0+2.2
BH to their forehand · rally+1.9±4.9−1.6+3.6
FH slice to the middle · return+1.3±3.2−0.5+1.8

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1−6.7±3.8−4.4−2.3
FH to the middle · rally−3.5±2.5−1.2−2.3
FH to their forehand · return−2.9±5.8−1.4−1.5
FH to their forehand · return +1−2.7±4.8−3.5+0.8
FH to the middle · return +1−2.6±3.8+1.1−3.7

Against Francisco Cerundolo-like opponents

Robin Soderling vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–65.1%32.2%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Casper Ruud, Carlos Alcaraz, Tommy Paul, Guy Den Ouden, Roberto Bautista Agut, Thiago Seyboth Wild, Luca Nardi, Kei Nishikori, Radu Albot, Pablo Andujar. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.