Dominating Tennis

What are the styles of play in tennis

Read any player as a bet. Then place your own.

Key facts

  1. 1

    At Wimbledon from 2015 to 2017, points of four shots or fewer made up over 70% of all points in men's matches and over 65% in women's.

    Fitzpatrick, Sheffield Hallam University PhD thesis (2021)

  2. 2

    The median rally is three shots on clay and two on grass and hard courts, which is how surface bends every style.

    Lisi, Grigoletto & Briglia (2024), Journal of Sports Analytics

  3. 3

    The Match Charting Project holds 17,808 charted matches, and style measures like these can be computed from charted points.

    Match Charting Project

  4. 4

    One way to map styles uses two measures: serve reliance, the share of points won by shot four on serve, and rally tolerance, the share won past shot eight.

Why it works

A style is a decision about which points to try to win. The counterpuncher bets on the opponent's error and pays in long points and lost time. The aggressive baseliner bets on the first strike and pays in errors when the serve isn't there.

The serve-and-volleyer bets on the net and pays in passing shots when the approach is short. The all-courter bets on switching and pays in the training hours it takes to own three games. None is free.

Champions aren't unique. They're archetypes executed better than anyone else. Surface and matchup constrain every bet, so read a style with the surface in mind, then name your own bet and train the tax it costs you.

The line to say on court

“Every style is a bet. Know the tax before you place it.”

Drill: Place four dots

40 min · alone
  1. Pick three players to watch and one set of your own that's been charted or filmed. Watch one set a session.
  2. Before you count, predict each player's style.
  3. For each set, count the points won by shot four on serve and the points won past shot eight.
  4. Place each player on the two measures and check whether they land in the style you predicted.
Number to beat3 of 4 players landing in the style you predicted

More drills like this: watch like an analyst

Faults and fixes

Naming a style from one point
One point is one bet, not the pattern.
FixCount a set before you name it.
Thinking style beats surface
Surface and matchup constrain every bet.
FixRead any style with the surface in mind.
Placing your own game by feel
Self-report is the weakest input.
FixChart a set of your own and let the count place you.

Questions players ask

What is a counterpuncher in tennis?

A player whose style bets on the opponent making the error. The tax is long points and lost time.

Is serve-and-volley extinct?

No. It's still an archetype. The serve-and-volleyer bets on the net and pays in passing shots when the approach is short.

How should a counterpuncher play a first-striker on grass?

Lengthen their points rather than trying to strike first. Grass already shortens rallies, so return deep and make the third ball a rally ball. The counter to a first-striker is the return, not a new style.

How do I find my own tennis style?

Chart a set rather than going by feel. Count the points you win by shot four on serve and the points you win past shot eight, and see which bet your game is really making.

What this doesn't cover

Style boundaries are interpretive, so any style map is a model, not a measurement. Placing yourself by self-report is the least reliable input, and a charted set is better. The rally-length figures come from professional tennis.

Sources

Read next

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