RallyIQ

Game plan

Sebastien Grosjean v Wayne Ferreira

Every number combines what Sebastien Grosjean does well with what Wayne Ferreira allows, each measured against the tour average and shrunk toward it when the sample is thin. Flip perspective

Forecast

Sebastien Grosjean wins, best of 3 34%90%: 11%–67% · best of 5: 31%
Serve points won 60.4% / 63.6% Sebastien / Wayne · tour 63.4%
Strengths only, no similarity priors 30%serve 60.2% / 64.3%

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 At least one of them is no longer active or has too little charted in the last three seasons, so both are compared on their careers.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 Sebastien Grosjean's record against Wayne Ferreira's tactical lookalikes and in their charted head-to-heads (lookalikes: +4.4 on serve, +6.1 on return vs expectation (531 points); head-to-head: −10.2 on serve, −11.3 on return vs expectation (113 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

CareerSebastienWayne
Direction choice−0.07 ±0.11
better than 38%
+0.09 ±0.09
better than 81%
Shot selection+0.09 ±0.19
better than 64%
−0.17 ±0.19
better than 32%
Execution−0.82 ±0.58
better than 31%
−1.10 ±0.89
better than 22%
Points left on the table2.72 ±0.24
lower than 39%
2.60 ±0.15
lower than 49%

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.

Sebastien Grosjean serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowSebastien winsv WayneMatchupOptimal
Wide49%73%74%74.2%±7.162% ▲
Body7%54%65%55.8%±15.00% ▼
T45%76%76%77.1%±7.638% ▼

Optimal v Wayne Ferreira: +0.3±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving T every time would read +2.8 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowSebastien winsv WayneMatchupOptimal
Wide49%70%76%73.8%±7.640% ▼
Body4%55%61%53.4%±16.70% ▼
T47%72%73%73.5%±8.360% ▲

Optimal v Wayne Ferreira: +0.3±0.8 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +1.0 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Wayne Ferreira serving

Deuce court

1st serveNowWayne winsv SebastienMatchupOptimal
Wide46%72%79%78.2%±6.359% ▲
Body3%63%67%66.8%±16.00% ▼
T50%73%78%75.8%±7.341% ▼

Optimal v Sebastien Grosjean: +0.5±0.7 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +1.6 per 100 first serves in before the returner adjusts.

Ad court

1st serveNowWayne winsv SebastienMatchupOptimal
Wide58%64%74%65.6%±8.245% ▼
Body7%58%65%59.9%±16.07%
T35%68%69%64.7%±9.048% ▲

Optimal v Sebastien Grosjean: +0.5±0.9 per 100 first serves (faults included) over the current mix, inside the 90% margin. Serving wide every time would read +0.7 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.

Sebastien Grosjean returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv WayneValue
FH through the middle30%+4.3+1.1+1.3+6.6±3.0
FH slice through the middle25%−4.2+3.4+0.4−0.4±1.9
FH down the line25%+1.7−0.5−1.3−0.1±4.4
FH slice down the line10%−4.3+3.5±0.0−0.8±2.2
FH crosscourt7%+5.5−4.5+2.2+3.2±4.3

Lean FH through the middle: +4.7±2.4 per 100 returns v the current mix (301 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv WayneValue
BH through the middle39%+6.4−2.7−1.1+2.6±2.7
BH crosscourt20%+8.8−1.2−0.2+7.4±3.6
BH slice through the middle14%−4.2+0.2+0.1−3.9±2.5
BH down the line13%+4.2+3.6+2.0+9.8±4.5
BH slice crosscourt8%+0.5−1.5+3.7+2.8±2.9

Lean BH down the line: +7.0±4.1 per 100 returns v the current mix (272 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv WayneValue
FH through the middle46%−3.5+0.2−2.5−5.7±2.9
FH down the line43%−1.8−3.2+1.6−3.4±4.7
FH crosscourt11%−0.2−1.5−1.6−3.3±3.7

Lean FH down the line: +1.1±3.0 per 100 returns v the current mix (79 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv WayneValue
BH through the middle27%−2.9+2.2−2.0−2.6±2.5
BH crosscourt26%+1.0+0.9−0.1+1.9±3.1
FH through the middle17%−2.9−0.2−2.5−5.6±2.4
BH down the line12%−0.2+1.1−3.2−2.3±4.9
FH inside-out10%+1.0+2.5+1.6+5.1±3.7

Lean FH inside-out: +5.8±3.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (275 returns charted)

Wayne Ferreira returning

1st serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv SebastienValue
FH through the middle41%+4.3−2.0−2.0+0.3±2.9
FH down the line36%+1.7−1.9−1.2−1.3±4.4
FH crosscourt15%+5.5+5.6+1.9+12.9±4.4
FH slice through the middle5%−4.2+0.9+1.7−1.6±2.1
FH slice down the line3%−4.3+0.5−1.0−4.8±2.6

Lean FH crosscourt: +11.6±4.2 per 100 returns v the current mix (209 returns charted)

1st serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv SebastienValue
BH through the middle33%+6.4−4.7−1.5+0.2±2.8
BH crosscourt27%+8.8−1.0+1.0+8.8±3.6
BH down the line16%+4.2−3.0+3.4+4.6±4.4
BH slice through the middle10%−4.2−1.1+0.2−5.1±2.4
BH slice crosscourt9%+0.5+0.9+0.1+1.6±2.9

Lean BH crosscourt: +6.2±2.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (211 returns charted)

2nd serve to the forehand

ReturnNowTourOwnv SebastienValue
FH through the middle43%−3.5+1.9+0.7−0.8±2.8
FH down the line33%−1.8−0.1+4.0+2.1±4.6
FH crosscourt24%−0.2+0.5+0.3+0.6±4.2

Lean FH down the line: +1.6±3.5 per 100 returns v the current mix (76 returns charted, inside the 90% margin)

2nd serve to the backhand

ReturnNowTourOwnv SebastienValue
BH crosscourt45%+1.0−0.2+1.5+2.3±2.9
BH through the middle37%−2.9−1.7±0.0−4.5±2.5
BH down the line10%−0.2−0.6−1.9−2.8±4.8
FH inside-in3%+0.6−0.4+0.3+0.5±3.7
FH through the middle3%−2.9+0.3+0.7−1.8±2.0

Lean BH crosscourt: +3.1±1.9 per 100 returns v the current mix (229 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.

Sebastien Grosjean

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · serve +1+4.0±3.4+1.1+2.9
BH slice to their backhand · rally+2.1±2.3+1.7+0.4
BH to the middle · rally+0.6±2.2+1.5−0.9
BH to the middle · serve +1+0.5±2.7+0.1+0.4
FH to the middle · return+0.2±2.5+0.3±0.0
BH to their backhand · serve +1−0.3±3.2+0.1−0.4

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their backhand · return +1−5.2±4.0−4.2−1.0
BH to their forehand · rally−4.0±4.3−5.3+1.4
FH to their forehand · return +1−3.7±4.1−4.4+0.7
FH to the middle · rally−3.0±2.2−1.4−1.7
FH to their forehand · rally−3.0±2.8−1.7−1.3

Wayne Ferreira

Favour

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
FH to their forehand · return+5.4±4.5+4.2+1.2
BH slice to their backhand · rally+4.4±2.5+3.2+1.2
FH to their backhand · return +1+2.6±4.0+0.3+2.3
BH to their backhand · return +1+2.1±3.2+0.4+1.8
FH to their backhand · serve +1+1.8±3.3−0.1+2.0
FH to their backhand · return+1.6±3.7+0.1+1.5

Avoid

ShotEdgeOwnTheirs
BH to the middle · return−5.9±2.3−4.4−1.6
BH to their forehand · rally−5.3±4.2−3.8−1.4
FH to their forehand · rally−5.2±2.8−3.3−1.9
FH to the middle · rally−3.8±2.3−2.9−0.9
FH to their forehand · serve +1−3.1±3.8−0.7−2.3

Against Wayne Ferreira-like opponents

Sebastien Grosjean vMatchesServe pts wonReturn pts won
All charted opponents–60.4%32.7%
Players most similar to Wayne Ferreira2 65.8%39.5%
Wayne Ferreira (charted head-to-head)1 50.0%24.4%

Similar by tactical fingerprint: Flavio Cobolli, Kyle Edmund, Ivan Ljubicic, James Blake, Nicolas Kiefer, Gustavo Kuerten, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Marcelo Rios, Magnus Norman. When two players have rarely met, their records against these lookalikes fill the gap.

Charted head-to-head