There are many ways to win a tennis match. During this year’s US Open, USOpen.org will be playing a numbers game, digging deeper into the statistical analysis of select matches to provide highlights, further insights and data points on player performance.
Frances Tiafoe has safely navigated his way through to the third round of the Us Open with a 6-1, 6-2, 7-5 win over Guido Pella.
The American dominated the match throughout, as highlighted by the breakdown of shots in offense / neutral / defense for both players:
Tiafoe Offense: 26%
Both players in neutral 59%
Pella Offense: 15%
Why is this significant? When a player hits between 10-15% more shots in offense than their opponent, they win the contest over 80% of the time.
One of the main reasons Tiafoe controlled the match is how early he contacted the ball. (US Open average in brackets)
Inside the baseline: 38% (26%)
0-2 m from the baseline: 55% (48%)
2 m beyond the baseline: 7% (26%)
This is crucial to the Tiafoe game plan as he wins 56% of the points where he contacts the ball inside the baseline compared to 40% when he contacts the ball 2 m beyond the baseline.
One of the challenges that Tiafoe’s opponents face is the contrast between his very heavy forehand and his flat lower bouncing backhand. The Tiafoe forehand averages 3075 rpm with a height of 1.60 m when crossing the net. In contrast, his backhand averages 1479 rpm and crosses the net at 1.44 m.
This combination of taking the ball early and contrasting groundstrokes creates a unique challenge for Tiafoe's third-round opponent, 5th seed Andrey Rublev.
