Great write up. I noticed the preponderance of blocked returns as well and thought it a microcosm of a different approach to point construction on Denis' part. (Safe to believe it's Delgado's influence?) If one can consistently hit that return such that someone like Zverev is falling backwards in their reply, as the German is in your first clip, then after that it's 21-out-of-the-hand as far as the point dynamic goes and Shapovalov's chances of winning a point go up significantly. Do you have any numbers on Shapo's average returns in play? I suspect he posted much better numbers in this match.
(And versus Rafa, will that return suffice even if performed excellently? Not the same opponent by a long shot, Zverev at the top of his game or no.)
Great write up. I noticed the preponderance of blocked returns as well and thought it a microcosm of a different approach to point construction on Denis' part. (Safe to believe it's Delgado's influence?) If one can consistently hit that return such that someone like Zverev is falling backwards in their reply, as the German is in your first clip, then after that it's 21-out-of-the-hand as far as the point dynamic goes and Shapovalov's chances of winning a point go up significantly. Do you have any numbers on Shapo's average returns in play? I suspect he posted much better numbers in this match.
(And versus Rafa, will that return suffice even if performed excellently? Not the same opponent by a long shot, Zverev at the top of his game or no.)
Awesome write up as usual.