Duel Match Stats/Reports - Medvedev vs Zverev, Shanghai 2019 & Paris 2020 finals

[Waspsting]

Daniil Medvedev beat Alexander Zverev 6-4, 6-1 in the Shanghai final, 2019 on hard court

To date, this is both players only final at the event. The tournament would not be played again until 2023

Medvedev won 62 points, Zverev 43

Serve Stats
Medvedev...
- 1st serve percentage (32/57) 56%
- 1st serve points won (28/32) 88%
- 2nd serve points won (10/25) 40%
- Aces 4
- Double Faults 2
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (14/57) 25%

Zverev...
- 1st serve percentage (31/48) 65%
- 1st serve points won (20/31) 65%
- 2nd serve points won (4/17) 24%
- Aces 7
- Double Faults 3
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (14/48) 29%

Serve Pattern
Medvedev served...
- to FH 36%
- to BH 64%

Zverev served...
- to FH 53%
- to BH 40%
- to Body 7%

Return Stats
Medvedev made...
- 31 (13 FH, 18 BH)
- 7 Errors, all forced...
- 7 Forced (5 FH, 2 BH)
- Return Rate (31/45) 69%

Zverev made...
- 41 (14 FH, 27 BH)
- 10 Errors, comprising...
- 3 Unforced (2 FH, 1 BH)
- 7 Forced (3 FH, 4 BH)
- Return Rate (41/55) 75%

Break Points
Medvedev 4/5 (4 games)
Zverev 1/6 (2 games)

Winners (including returns, excluding aces)
Medvedev 15 (6 FH, 6 BH, 2 BHV, 1 OH)
Zverev 7 (2 FH, 3 BH, 2 OH)

Medvedev's FHs - 1 cc pass, 2 dtl, 1 inside-out, 1 inside-in, 1 longline
- BHs - 4 cc (1 pass), 1 dtl/inside-out, 1 net chord dribbler

- 1 from a serve-volley point, a first volley BHV

- 1 other BHV was a swinging shot

Zverev's FHs - 1 dtl, 1 inside-out
- BHs - 2 cc, 1 longline pass

Errors (excluding returns and serves)
Medvedev 20
- 14 Unforced (7 FH, 7 BH)
- 6 Forced (3 FH, 3 BH)
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 48.6

Zverev 30
- 21 Unforced (10 FH, 11 BH)
- 9 Forced (7 FH, 1 BHV, 1 BH1/2V)... with 2 FH running-down-drop-shot (1 at net, 1 not)
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 45.2

(Note 1: all half-volleys refer to such shots played at net. Half -volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke counts)

(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)

Net Points & Serve-Volley
Medvedev was...
- 6/7 (86%) at net, including...
- 2/3 (67%) serve-volleying, all 2nd serves

Zverev was 4/10 (40%) at net

Match Report
Polished, consummate showing from Medvedev who does almost everything at least a little better than Zverev. And Zverev chokes. Court is quick-ish

Serving at 4-5, 30-30, Zver double faults twice to lose the first set. His first (and second) of the match. After Med saves a break point and holds to open the second set, Zver reaches 40-0. From where, he manages to get himself broken missing routine groundies and double faulting again

Another break is icing on the cake and makes for the one sided scoreline, but by then, Zver’s chokes have already buried him

There’s not much Med doesn’t do well. Serves big, Returns very steadily against a very powerful serve. Walls up from the back, and on top of excellent consistency, movement and shot tolerance are also tested. Its not just wall-ing up, as he goes for his shots with good judgment and nails them off both sides. Serve-volleys successfully behind second serves on important points. Some great passes. The one thing he doesn’t do well? Drop shots. Misses them and ones he doesn’t are poor ones that can usually be reached comfortably

Zver has the big serve too, and serves at higher rate, but his second serves are dollies. He’s apt to play further behind baseline than Med and less willing to step up, or go for his shots. He probably shades force of shot but trails consistency, which falls off to poor at times - but more credit to Med’s walling for how that contest turns out than discredit to Zver. Doesn’t come to net much, and volleys poorly, just plonking them in middle of court. He’s not slow, but Med is quicker. His drop shots are as bad as Med’s, though he misses fewer. He does return well

Unreturned rates of 25% and 29% are low for quick court and servers of this calibre. So have to say great returning by both to make it so

Zver serves at 65% and 23% of his first serves are aces
Med serves at 56% and 13% of his first serves are aces

But its Med who has Zver lunging about to reach returns. With his further back position, Med’s able to move into position more comfortably. And he barely misses anything

Return errors
- UEs - Zver 3
- FEs - both 7

For Med to have as many errors as he’s been aced shows great consistency. And he returns with good neutralizing force, leaving Zver with minimal advantage on third ball. Zver wins just 54% of his non-ace first serve points (that includes other unreturned serves)

Med by contrast wins 88% of his first serve points. Ends the match on an unbroken run 20 straight first serve points won @Moose Malloy (the last point he loses is product of a bad drop shot). That’s as much about his varied, well judged play as the serve. He’s got good lot of winners, but most come after decent length rallies - not dispatched third balls to weak returns. Zver can’t return with neutralizing force, but just getting so many returns back in play is a commendable feat

Second serve points won - Med 40%, Zver 24%

Poor numbers. Especially Zver’s, whose second serves are rolled in, but his keeping in check Med’s good second serve is testament to his not playing badly either

Winners - Med 15, Zver 7
Errors Forced - Med 9, Zver 6
UEs - Med 14, Zver 21

Baseline action is dual winged. The BH rallies are good, with both striking cleanly and well. At times, Zver gives up simple errors to routine balls on them. Slight drawbacks include silly drop shot errors by Med and slice errors by Zver, which are ungainly of look on top of unreliable

Med has 3 BH cc winners (excluding a pass), Zver 2. Med’s are set up by the serve or through outmanuvering Zver in rallies, both of Zver’s are magnificent shots out of nowhere. Better shots, sure, but his needing to play them is what makes Med the better player, the better rallyer (leaving aside consistency)

Zver hitting his FHs a little harder, but Med more apt to go for the winner to not obvious ball (if not quite ‘from out of nowhere’ shots). Med with 7 winners on the FH, Zver just 2

Court position plays major role in the aggressive stats. Staying behind baseline, it would take some shot from Zver to aggressively end points. Like his 2 BH cc winners, but he (wisely) doesn’t try much

There’s moving-opponent around play. There are long rallies. And where Zver’s camped out, he’d need to outlast Med to be coming up ahead

 

[Waspsting]

Neutral UEs - Med 6, Zver 13… so that’s not happening. Some sloppiness from Zver there, but more credit to Med for barely missing anything. More aggressive UEs are tied at 8 - with Med having 24 aggressively points won to Zver’s 13, he’s winning there too

Coincidentally, Med’s figures are identical across wings. Both FH and BH have 6 winners, 7 UEs and 3 FEs. Zver’s aren’t too far apart either, other than on FEs, where FH has 7, BH 0 (he has 1 more winner and 1 more UE off the BH than the FH)

Coming to net might be a relief option for Zver. He doesn’t much and he’s not very good when he does, plonking volleys in middle of court. And Med’s sharp on the pass too, even from poor position, let alone the good ones’s Zver’s volleying result in. Just 4/10 net points won by Zver

Bold move by Med is second serve-volleying on important points. Perfect, drop BHV winner to wide, under-net return is pick of his plays

Match Progression
Med breaks early to open up a 3-0 lead. Zver making just 1 first serve out of 5 helps in gaining the break, but it’s a well played game by Med, who forces 3 FH errors. And he’s able to consolidate, despite making the same 1/5 first serves

Zver breaks back for 2-3 in a 10 point game of testing rallies. Blazing BH cc winner from out of nowhere is the highlight and helps Zver get to 0-40. Med boldly second serve-volleys and pulls off perfect, drop BHV winner to save first break point and reaches deuce. Follows up by missing a putaway FH from around service line against a bad drop shot, but flukes out a net chord dribbling winner to again get back to deuce. Couple of aggressive errors after decent rallies ends the game

Things progress on serve to 5-4, with Med hitting a few FH winners. Zver hits a nice, back-pedalling OH winner from well behind service line to reach 30-30
He double faults twice in a row - and there goes the set

Zver strikes an even better BH cc winner in opening game of second set, but Med reaches 40-15 comfortably. Where he misses 2 identical, dumb drop shots and then second serve-volleys again, only to have to make a half-volley first up. Zver drills the pass from close to service line straight at him and it lands in for a winner to bring up break point

Zver misses one of the easier returns he faces on it. And Med goes on to hold with third ball BH cc winner and an OH winner set up by a FH dtl

3 unreturned serves (2 aces) gets Zver to 40-0 in response. Pair of wide passes get Med on the board for the game - and from there, Zver blows the game with ground UEs and a double fault to get broken

He’s broken again next time around, with Med again outlasting him and counter-attacking nicely. A winning wide pass from a very defensive position raises break point, and Zver chooses to take net. His volleys aren’t convincing and ultimately, leads to Med joining him at net to swing away a BHV winner

Wonderful BH dtl/inside-out winner by Med next game as he holds for 5-0

Zver gets on the board, before Med serves out to 15, ending with an ace

Summing up, a fine showing from Medvedev, who save drop-shotting, is on the ball in all areas. His groundstrokes are polished, typically consistent but he’s not slow to step up and look for the point ending shot - and executes it off both wings, particularly the FH

Zverev serves and returns well enough, but is outplayed off the ground in all ways - outlasted, outmanuvered, out-run. Choking away serve couple times sets him back, but generally, he doesn’t play badly and more credit to the winner for a fine showing than discredit to Zverev for a bad one

 

[aldeayeah]

For all that we like to sh** on Zverev, at least nowadays he's become considerably better at adopting a proactive gameplan.

Which against Med is a must, since he has very little chance of beating him with a reactive gameplan. This match is a good example.

 

[Waspsting]

Medvedev beat Zverev 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 in the Paris final, 2020 on indoor hard court

Medvedev would go onto win the Year End Championship shortly after. To date, this is Zverev’s only final at the event. Medvedev would finish runner-up the following year

Medvedev won 101 points, Zverev 84

Serve Stats
Medvedev...
- 1st serve percentage (48/83) 58%
- 1st serve points won (38/48) 79%
- 2nd serve points won (21/35) 60%
- Aces 14 (1 second serve)
- Double Faults 2
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (27/83) 33%

Zverev...
- 1st serve percentage (76/102) 75%
- 1st serve points won (51/76) 67%
- 2nd serve points won (9/26) 35%
- Aces 11
- Double Faults 3
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (36/102) 35%

Serve Pattern
Medvedev served...
- to FH 53%
- to BH 47%

Zverev served...
- to FH 48%
- to BH 49%
- to Body 2%

Return Stats
Medvedev made...
- 63 (27 FH, 36 BH), including 1 runaround BH
- 25 Errors, comprising...
- 9 Unforced (3 FH, 6 BH)
- 16 Forced (9 FH, 7 BH)
- Return Rate (63/99) 64%

Zverev made...
- 54 (24 FH, 30 BH)
- 13 Errors, comprising...
- 5 Unforced (4 FH, 1 BH)
- 8 Forced (6 FH, 2 BH)
- Return Rate (54/81) 67%

Break Points
Medvedev 4/10 (5 games)
Zverev 1/7 (2 games)

Winners (including returns, excluding aces)
Medvedev 21 (11 FH, 8 BH, 1 FHV, 1 BHV)
Zverev 9 (2 FH, 2 BH, 1 FHV, 2 BHV, 2 OH)

Medvedev's FHs - 4 cc (1 pass), 3 dtl (1 pass), 3 inside-out, 1 inside-in
- BHs - 5 cc (1 at net, 1 pass), 1 inside-out, 1 inside-out/dtl pass, 1 running-down-drop-shot drop shot at net

- 1 from a serve-volley point, a first volley BHV

Zverev's FHs - 1 cc, 1 inside-out pass
- BHs - 2 net chord dribblers

- 1 OH was on the bounce

Errors (excluding returns and serves)
Medvedev 37
- 24 Unforced (14 FH, 9 BH, 1 FHV)... 1 FH was a ball he made but incorrectly challenged
- 13 Forced (5 FH, 6 BH, 2 BHV)... with 1 FH running-down-drop-shot at net
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 45.8

Zverev 50
- 32 Unforced (13 FH, 17 BH, 1 FHV, 1 BHV)
- 18 Forced (9 FH, 9 BH)... with 1 FH running-down-drop-shot at net
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 44.7

(Note 1: all half-volleys refer to such shots played at net. Half -volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke counts)

(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)

Net Points & Serve-Volley
Medvedev was...
- 9/14 (64%) at net, including...
- 3/4 (75%) serve-volleying, comprising...
- 1/1 off 1st serve and...
- 2/3 (67%) off 2nd serve

Zverev was...
- 13/20 (65%) at net, including...
- 2/2 serve-volleying, both 1st serves

Match Report
Brutish serving (particularly from Zverev) and bruising, long baseline rallies (which Medvedev has sizably the better off) make up this match, which is decided by Zverev’s legs being gone by the end. Court is on quick side of normal, quicker than Paris’ norm

Key stats are -
- 1st serve in - Zverev 75% (Med 58%), and
- 2nd serve points won - Med 60%, Zver 35%

The second serve figure indicates who the better court player is and by what extent
High first serve in count by Zver is why that isn’t completely decisive. Long as Zver can bang down fat, 130mph first serves regularly, he’s good to hold

He doesn’t even place them well. He doesn’t have to. At that power, they’re good to draw errors or come back very feebly for Zver to finish points quickly (usually with more brutish stuff, hit through opponent stuff). And at that rate, that’s good for him to be comfy holding - however much better Med might have of baseline contest. And however good Med is at returning tough serves from his well back position

Zver being competitive doesn’t last all match. Match ends with him losing 9/10 games in a row. He’s grounded down by Med’s varied baseline play and has his legs taken away by it. Curiously, the key game is logically, not a good one from Med’s point of view

After breaking to open the deciding set, Med is stretched to 16 points to consolidate, saving 4 break points in so doing. It’s a tough, gruelling game - and what finally breaks Zver, who isn’t the same after losing the game. You’d think holding quickly, easily would be preferable for Med, but the extended grind of this game ends up serving him better in the big picture scheme of winning the match

That’s not even the toughest game of the match. In second set, Zver holds a 22 point game that makes the later one look cozy. That takes score 2-1 on serve and is probably, the beginning of the ultimate outcome of wearing Zver out. He’s more worn out after it than Med is, who isn’t exactly turning cartwheels at the change-over after it either

Baseline rallies are long and varied, dual winged - with Med getting better of it, more and more as match goes on. Initially, its Zver whose harder hitter and pressing Med more than the other way around. Unlike the Shanghai match, where he was just pushing

The 22 point game can be seen as turning point of that. Med grappling away upper hand position. He’s grittier, more consistent, moves the ball (and Zver) around more, build up to attacking and does so successfully, finishing points with fine shots off both wings. He’s got better of FH play in particular but BH advantage isn’t too far behind

All that, in context of long grindy rallies. It has a long run effect that goes beyond winning or losing this or that point

Serve & Return
Both serve big. Med with good lot of big second serves too, Zver’s seconds are gimme’s, but he serves at large 75% so he can get away with the gentle second serves

Med serves wider, more aggressively. Zver just seems to bang them down full of power

First serve ace rate - Med 27%, Zver 14%, but…
Unreturned serves - Med 33%, Zver 35%

Its not a lot of fun to watch, but fine job by Zver. Not serving too close to lines lets him keep high in count (which Med can’t). And he’s still winning points with the serve shot. Its probably not by design - generally as well as here, this type of serve-through-opponent is Zver’s way and he’s not a good spot server

Still, Med with his far back position is just about the hardest returner to draw errors out of with this kind of serving

16/25 Med return errors have been marked FEs. Unusually high for him, as he can usually be in position to meet almost any serve from his backward position. Its not just pace, but bounce, that comes from his height, that makes Zver tough to return

Med occasionally steps up close to baseline to slap second returns hard. Should probably do it more often - Zver’s second serve is a buffet ball begging to be smacked. As he wins 65% second return points, no need to question Med’s choices; it works

As for return quality, Zver’s like his serve, is solidly sound. Med occasionally sweep one particularly hard or deep, but also gives up feeble returns more often (in natural context of both players doing so because serving is so good)

Zver’s BH return is a rock. He’s got just 3 errors (1 UE, 2 FEs) to 10 of the FH (4 UE, 6 FE), despite Med serving almost evenly across wings (53% to FH, rest to BH). Serving more to FH is counter-default procedure, so Med’s on to how it is. Would do well to serve still more to FH

 

[Waspsting]

Play - Baseline (& Net)
Winners - Med 21, Zver 9
Errors Forced - Med 18, Zver 13
(Aggressively ended points - Med 39, Zver 22)
UEs - Med 24, Zver 32

Med with substantial leads in all areas… +12 winners, +5 forcing errors, +8 UEs (as in, he has fewer). Pretty clear cut

All of that gets shortened taking out last 5 games of course, of which Med wins 4 because Zver’s physically waning, but by far more credit to Med for that than discredit to Zver; Med’s systematically taken his legs out over the match, Zver’s stamina isn’t poor

Zver’s aggression flows out of his big first serve and usually coming to net. Fat serve, weak mid-court return, fat groundie not far from Med from well up the court and approach, nominal passing error. Hard hit ball from well up court would likely be too much for Med even sans the approach part. Zver doesn’t volley particularly well or at all - the approach shot does all the work, and the serve does most of the work in setting up the approach shot

Net points rallying to net - Zver 11/18, Med 6/10

Even then, he hasn’t done too well at net. When he actually has to volley, he’s apt to be indecisive with the shot (also has 2 UEs) and Med as ever, apt to find a winning pass (2 passing winners)

Other than immediate net play set up by serve, Zver stays back and plays stock groundies. FHs are average, BHs well struck. Neutral rallying, waiting out for errors, the BHs in particular sometimes pressuringly powerful, if not quite attacking

UE breakdown -
Neutral - Med 14, Zver 22
Attacking - Med 6, Zver 5
Winner Attempt - Med 4, Zver 5

And by shot -
- Med BH 9
- FHs - Zver 13, Med 14
- Zver BH 17

Med’s neutral advantage is a good starting point for him. His getting so much better of the Zver’s stronger hitting BH makes it particularly so and renders Zver somewhat toothless from the back

Lots of long rallies without much movement. Med holds up better. Or rallies that start that way and get more fluid. Med’s the one to initiate those and he does it off both wings. His BH play stands out more because its more unusual for that wing to have so much variety of direction. From moving-opponent around, Med’s no slouch at genuinely going on the attack and finshing aggressively from the back, with FH starring

Med’s has match high 11 FH winners, including ground to ground 3 cc, 2 dtl, 3 inside-out, 1 inside-in. As varied as you like. Zver has 1 FH ground-to-ground winner, a cc
Med’s BH winners include 3 cc and 1 fully inside-out, from deuce court to opposite deuce court, the rest being passes or net shots. Both of Zver’s BH winners are net chord dribblers

Changing directions longline off both sides, moving Zver around, finishing him off… full baseline works from Med. And Zver’s solid of hitting and consistency, moving pretty well too. Excellent stuff from Med to outplay him so. He rarely plays 3 straight cc shots, always at least gently moving Zver around

Zver’s attacking and more UEs just 1 less than Med’s, while ending 17 fewer points with winners or forcing errors. Helped out at the end, when he plays a few wild shots, but he doesn’t see ready openings, nor can he create them like Med does

Match Progression
2 giraffes serve-botting with 80%+ in counts make up the first set

Zver serves 29/35 or 83% first serves, Med 22/26 or 85% for 6 games, before being broken to end the set when he makes 2/6

Aces, freebies, half-court returns that are dealt with easily… that’s action, all flowing out of overblown in-count. Zver takes net early on his service points. He’s harder hitter, especially off the BH and looks to boss play and does lead action more often than not

Amidst easy holds, Zver’s extended to 10 points to hold for 4-3. Some good, taking chances winning shots by Med in it - FH dtl and FH cc both forced errors and a nifty drop shot Zver in and then pass him precisely with BH inside-out/dlt, but freebies keep Zver’s nose ahead. He seals the game with a serve-volley point, where he makes a very good, low first volley

Only break ends the set, with Zver outlasting Med to draw 2 BH UEs before smacking an excellent FH inside-out pass winner to reach 0-40. Med’s aggressive in saving 2 break/set points, but misses his attacking FH dtl to give up the set, the same shot he’d saved first break point with

Things begin to change after Zver ‘bots a hold to open the second set. Med responds with a particularly aggressive hold, with back to back third ball ground winners to end the game (FH inside-out and BH cc)

Then the 22 point game. The third point is a fantastic, long rally that Med ends with a FH dtl winner. Zver responds with a winning BH inside-out. The game goes on and on. At one stage, Zver misses 7 first serves in a row. There are long rallies and tough rallies and fluid rallies and Zver starts taking net. Med strikes a FH dtl pass winner on virtually the half-volley. Having saved 4 break points, Zver finally holds. 2 OHs aren’t enough to put point to bed, and he needs a BHV winner to do that

Hell of a game. And 0 dawdling during it. Zver, who’s the more winded during the game, including after the third point, gets right on with it at all times. There’s no crowd due to pandemic restrictions. Would be easy for him to slow down the game and recover his breath some between points, but he shows no inkling of doing anything but get right on with it

The game is a turning point, and action slips Med’s way. There are two 1-2 combos ending with winners in his follow-up hold (BH dtl + FH cc and BH cc series + FH inside-in). He hits a fantastic BH inside-out winner awhile later to hold for 4-4

Med breaks in a good game - winning BH dtl to end a sturdy BH-BH rally, a running-down-drop-shot drop shot net at winner drawn with a FH dtl and to finish, a decent FH inside-out that Zver can’t retrieve. He serves out to love, finishing with a second serve ace

Zver’s already seems to be feeling heavy in the legs as he’s broken to love to start the decider. Moves to net 3 times, is passed once and misses 2 easy volleys

Then the ironically effective, 16 point game. Its hard fought enough, and 4 break points come and go. Med, as Zverev had done, takes ot net play to get himself over the line. And the game seems to take what’s left of Zverev’s legs out from him

He’s broken again in another punishing game from Med to trail 0-3 and goes through motions after that, sometimes rashly going for winners that he invariably misses. Double faults on match point to wrap things up

Summing up, match starts with both giants hardly missing a first serve and ensuing server domination. Match ends with Zverev wobbling. In between, Medvedev masterfully guides him to that state with expert baseline play

Zverev hits well and steadily, but Medvedev is not just steadier, but turns to moving his opponent around - now more, now less - moving from there to finishing attacks off both wings and extending rallies to drain Zverev out some more

Adroit stuff from Medvedev to outplay a solid enough Zverev, who needs all he can get out of his first serve to stay in the game, amidst his opponents long-term grind out