RallyIQ

WTA · Right-handed · 2 charted matches · 2012–2019

Mandy Minella

Shot expected value

The share of points Mandy Minella goes on to win after each option in the positions they face most often, shrunk toward tour average when the sample is small. Showing the 8 most-used options; teal marks the best one with at least 30 shots.

Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your forehand side

position worth 43% to the average player · 71 shots

OptionUsedWin %Tour
FH crosscourt 46% 42.2%±11.2 46.7%
FH down the line 31% 54.7%±12.6 44.9%
FH through the middle 23% 39.6%±13.4 41.3%

Rally, shots 5–8: drive to your backhand side

position worth 45% to the average player · 52 shots

OptionUsedWin %Tour
BH crosscourt 38% 38.8%±12.7 47.6%
BH through the middle 31% 46.3%±13.7 43.3%

Serve under pressure

Deuce court

1st serveUsageBreak ptWon when in
Wide 46% 25% ▼ 62% / 66%
Body 24% 0% ▼ 57% / 57%
T 30% 75% ▲ 68% / 68%

74 normal · 4 break-point 1st serves

Ad court

1st serveUsageBreak ptWon when in
Wide 31% 18% ▼ 57% / 66%
Body 18% 35% ▲ 62% / 56%
T 51% 47% 61% / 64%

55 normal · 17 break-point 1st serves

Is the serve mix in equilibrium?

Game theory says a well-mixed server wins equally often with every direction they use. If one direction wins more, it's underused and points are being left behind. This is the minimax test Walker and Wooders ran on Wimbledon finals, applied to every charted first serve. Win rates include faults. "Optimal" allows for returners reading a habit. A direction loses 0.19 points per 100 serves for every 10 points of habitual usage, measured from WTA servers whose mix drifted between matches. Shifts stay within the range servers' habits actually vary, the only range that response was measured over.

Deuce court

1st serveUsagePoints won
Wide45% 51.4%±10.2 n=35
Body23% 56.5%±11.8 n=18
T32% 58.3%±10.9 n=25

Consistent with an optimal mix (p = 0.48).

Ad court

1st serveUsagePoints won
Wide28% 49.4%±11.6 n=20
Body22% 60.1%±11.9 n=16
T50% 57.1%±10.0 n=36

Consistent with an optimal mix (p = 0.19).

Return by serve direction

Return points won against each serve direction, compared with the tour average.

ServeCourtDirectionPointsWonvs tour
1stAd courtBody 15 43% −1.3±12.1
1stAd courtT 27 45% +9.5±10.8
1stAd courtWide 12 37% +2.1±12.2
1stDeuce courtBody 22 38% −4.6±11.1
1stDeuce courtT 17 25% −7.4±10.4
1stDeuce courtWide 12 39% +4.6±12.4
2ndAd courtBody 17 56% +1.4±11.9
2ndAd courtT 5 50% −5.0±13.9
2ndAd courtWide 4 56% +2.5±14.0
2ndDeuce courtBody 17 58% +3.7±11.8
2ndDeuce courtT 8 49% −6.5±13.3
2ndDeuce courtWide 9 49% −4.7±13.2

Discovered sequences

Mined from every me → opponent → me run of three shots, with no templates. Ranked by how much more often Mandy Minella wins the point once the sequence happens, weighted by how often it happens. Think of them as chess openings.

  1. FH crosscourt → FH crosscourt → FH down the line used 3.3% · won 46% · +2.7±12.9 vs own baseline · +2.3 vs tour on the same sequence Disrupted by Qiang Wang (7/14)
  2. FH crosscourt → FH crosscourt → FH crosscourt used 3.3% · won 41% · −2.2±12.7 vs own baseline · −10.8 vs tour on the same sequence Disrupted by Qiang Wang (5/14)

Charted matches