Some good qualy spots available. Ones to avoid are Li Na, Pavluchenkova and Hantuchova. The rest are pretty good draws.

jmjhb wrote:

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First serve: 44% (Czink: 64%)
Points on first serve won: 81%

Second serve points won: 48%

14 aces
9 double faults.

 

I hope this doesn't sound critical (especially after such an excellent win), but if she can find a tad more consistency in the serve, she'll have absolutely nothing to worry about.

-- Edited by jmjhb on Saturday 1st of October 2011 07:00:37 AM

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Yes, we were discussing this earlier in the thread after her first match.  And indeed partly from the view that it's quite exciting that she is getting such results while her first serve percentage hasn't been generally that great.

The other thing is that when it is in it's a bigger first serve than most and she does get a relatively high points won % from her first serve when it goes in.  Today it was outstanding at 81% ( and Czink actually very good at 72% ) but as I say appears to me to be a generally better % won than other women.

So, there's kind of good and not so good from her first serve, in it's very good already but yes could be quite a bit more consistent.  If she got real higher consistency and maintains the penetration I believe it has the potential to be a real weapon in the women's game and gain many more cheap ponts than many top women.

There may have to be some balance in taking a bit off her serve to get more consistency but if in time she can bulid the two together, it will be very good.  Even with the lowish consistency, the penetration she can get when it goes in overall doesn't make her serve a particular liability. It's turning it as I say into a real consistent weapon to add to her strong and improving groundgame that adds to the hope of Laura can become.

-- Edited by indiana on Saturday 1st of October 2011 10:30:27 AM

steven wrote:

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L60: (Q) Laura Robson WR 146 v Polona Hercog (SLO) WR 35 (=CH) - 4th on the Moon, prob. about 10 BST on Sunday

Hercog beat Hev in a close 3-setter in qualifying in Canada this summer.

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 Not one on Maza's 'avoid' list then  That's good. But still a bit scary !!!

Perhaps Laura is working though a new plan to reach the next level. I remember something similar happening to Andy, he had a very consistent 1st and 2nd serve but won virtually the same percentage of points on each. Then he got a new coach and for several tournaments his 1st serve percentage in dropped below 50% but the percentage of points won on his 1st service shot up. I suspect his coach told him his was wasting the opportunity provided by a first service and he needed to increase the power of his 1st serve even if more of them missed. Gradually the percentage of 1st serves in improved and Andy moved to a new level. Likewise at this stage it would pay Laura to fire rockets on her first serve even at 40% so long as she has a reliable 2nd serve and then work to improve the consistency of her first serves over the next 12 months to take her to the next level.

Peter too wrote:

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Perhaps Laura is working though a new plan to reach the next level. I remember something similar happening to Andy, he had a very consistent 1st and 2nd serve but won virtually the same percentage of points on each. Then he got a new coach and for several tournaments his 1st serve percentage in dropped below 50% but the percentage of points won on his 1st service shot up. I suspect his coach told him his was wasting the opportunity provided by a first service and he needed to increase the power of his 1st serve even if more of them missed. Gradually the percentage of 1st serves in improved and Andy moved to a new level. 

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Sorry chum, I just can't resist. This is the most outstanding example of retrospectively imposing pattern and meaning onto random noise that I think I have ever seen. 

No offence, honest!!!

There was definitely a year where Andy's first serve in % improved considerably according to the RICOH ATP Stats.  I think 2009, maybe 2008.  From being among the lowest it actually got within range of most of the top players.

Looking occasionally at these stats thereafter and again today, my impression is it has dropped back a bit since ( and I wish it was higher ).

Currently for 2011, it is 48th out of 67 players listed at 59%.  Nadal is 6th on 67%, Djokovic 12th on 66% and Federer 15th on 64%.

Although as I say my impression is that it has dropped back a bit from the level it did improve to, I would agree with Mad that at an overall 59% it is nowadays at a generally higher level than it was in his early tour years.

No idea on the who or what caused any of this to come about