Friday, 29 August 2025 / Published in Serve And Volley, US Open

This Specific Tactic Wins 81% Of The Time At The 2025 US Open

G’day,

What does dominance really look like on a tennis court?

Well, when you win a set 6-0, you typically win right around 70% of points in that set. For example, Carlos Alcaraz defeated Mattia Bellucci 6-1, 6-0, 6-3 in the US Open second round a couple of days ago.

In set two, which Alcaraz won 6-0, he won 71% (27/38) of points played. That’s very one-sided.

However, a remarkable statistic has emerged after the first two rounds in the women’s draw this week. Keep in mind that 96 of the 127 matches have been completed, so that’s a solid sample size. This statistic shows that those who employed this strategy won a jaw-dropping 81% of their points. The next highest win percentage is first serves won, at 73%.

What strategy is rocking New York?

Serve. And. Volley.

The women have combined to serve and volley just 58 times from 20,940 possible attempts. It’s a drop of water in the ocean. But what’s not trivial is the win percentage. The ladies have won a remarkable 47 out of 58 attempts, which equates to an 81% win rate.

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Only 28 of 128 players have served and volleyed so far through the first two rounds. Here are some fascinating insights into their serve-and-volley strategy.

Two players (Karolina Muchova and Priscilla Hon) lead the list with the most amount of serve and volley points with eight apiece. They both won five = 63%
A staggering 21 of the 28 ladies who attempted serve and volley in the first two rounds DIDN’T LOSE A POINT! That’s right, they won 100% of their serve and volley attempts. Laura Siegemund served and volleyed five times and won all of those points.

On the men’s side, they have served and volleyed 484 times through the first two rounds, winning an impressive 68%. Daniel Altmaier leads the pack with 31 serve and volley points, followed by Jan-Lennard Struff (29), Ben Shelton (27), Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (23), and Tristan Schoolkate (22). Thirty-one men have served and volleyed at least once and have not lost a point utilizing the aggressive tactic. Kamil Majchrzak leads the tournament in this area, winning all eight serve and volley points he has played.

Anyway, I digress. Let’s get back to the women’s draw and their impressive win percentages serving and volleying.

Serve & volley is an outstanding tactic at any time, but particularly as a surprise tactic when the opponent is not expecting it.

These women who are employing it are doing it just enough for it to be wildly successful, but not too much that the returner knows for sure it is coming, and adapts their return to aim low at the feet instead of deep in the court.

Just ONE serve and volley point can change the complexion of a match. It sends an aggressive signal to the opponent that you are attacking, that you are the one dominating from the front of the court. It can unsettle the apple cart of the opponent and help you assert yourself as the player taking control of the match.

What’s the final message?

That even a little serve and volley can make a big difference in a match. Try it. You might like it too.

Craig

The practice court is clearly broken. Here’s the proof.

Points are "front loaded". By far the majority of the action, and the winning, takes place in THE FIRST 4 SHOTS. The practice court is full of long rallies. Matches are dominated by short rallies. There is a massive disconnect occurring.

We spend too much time grinding, banging balls up and down the middle of the court – that have no real benefit to winning tennis matches.

There are 3 specific rally lengths in tennis. Here is their percentage breakdown of total points.

0-4 Shots = 70%
5-8 Shots = 20%
9+ Shots = 10%

The First 4 Shots is specifically the serve, return, Serve +1 groundstroke and Return +1 groundstroke. Those are normally the shots that get practiced the least, but matter the most to winning tennis matches.

The net is an extremely high percentage place to be!

If you love playing tennis for fun, spend as much time at the baseline as you like. But if you compete – if the score matters – then you must turn your attention to the net to maximize your potential.

The “herd mentality” in tennis thinks it’s too tough to approach the net in today’s game. The conversation starts with improved string technology, more powerful rackets, and finishes with stronger, faster athletes. The herd think approaching is a relic of the past. The herd is WRONG!

AVERAGE WIN %
Baseline = 46%
Net = 66%

Data from ALL Grand Slams provides the facts about approach and volley, and the data is crystal clear – it’s immensely better than staying back at the baseline, grinding for a living.

The baseline is a tough place to create separation. Here's how to do it.

At the 2012 US Open, only 7 men and 14 women had a winning percentage from the baseline. At Wimbledon 2016, Andy Murray won the title only winning 52% of his baseline points - and he is one of the very best at it in the world!

Num3ers deeply explores the data that rules points, especially from the back of the court. Take a "deep dive" into all three rally lengths (0-4, 5-8, 9+), and winner and errors totals from the elite level of our game. The numbers will shock you!

All 4 Grand Slams

Forcing Errors = 41% Men / 37% Women
Winners = 32% Men / 29% Women
Unforced Errors = 27% Men / 34% Women

Num3ers is very much like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. It's about bringing together different data sets together to create the big picture.

Every recorded match from the 2015 Australian Open - Rd2 to the final.

There is a lot happening on a doubles court. Situations and strategies are constantly being adjusted to create mis-matches with court position. It's hard to keep track of - until now. Dou8les Num3ers is the most comprehensive analysis of doubles data in our sport. The focus is on how a point ends, and it's broken down eight ways to Sunday. Specifically, you find critical information on:

Winners rise to the #1 way a point ends (over forced & unforced errors)

- The last shot of the rally is overwhelmingly struck at the net.
- Center Window: the most important part of a doubles court to control.
- Stephen Huss: an in-depth interview on Wimbledon's Centre Court with the 2005 Wimbledon Doubles Champion.

Dou8les Num3ers leaves no stone unturned. Percentage breakdowns of how often the server or receiver hits the last shot highlight the dramatic influence of the serve. The last shot of the rally is significant, and is broken down into the following categories: volleys, overheads, passing shots, lobs and groundstrokes.

When you play a match, you actually play two matches.

When you walk out onto a tennis court, there are two matches that you are about to play. The first is during the point - a part of the match that you have spent a lot of time preparing for on the practice court. But there is a second match, that takes place in the 20 seconds between the points. This is where the mental and emotional aspects of our sport kick in.

Let's face it, there will be adversity in almost every tennis match that you play. The storm clouds are coming. How bug they are, and how long they last for, are up to you.

Between the points is very tennis specific. It provides a roadmap for the 20 seconds between the points, teaching how to handle the adversity that will surely come, and how to build on the successes that will also be present. Your mind is your biggest asset in a match, and Between the Points takes your hand off the self destruct button and stops you beating yourself.

You don't have to be good at everything, but you have got to be good at something.

You can break tennis down into four key elements - serving, returning, rallying and approaching. Each part has specific patterns of play that consistently deliver higher winning percentages than the others. No more guessing. No more opinions. All facets of our sport are covered in this exceptional product, clearly outlining what patterns to gravitate to, and how to best construct the practice court. Data comes primarily from the 2015 Australian Open.

Building Blocks

MEN = 70% errors / 30% winners
WOMEN = 74% errors / 26% winners

Forcing errors is the best way to construct a point.
You can simply break tennis down into primary and secondary patterns of play - and they are all covered here. Primary patterns include serve and return direction, forehands v backhands, and the best way to approach the net. Secondary patterns include drop shots, serve & volley and 1st volley options. If you play tournaments, this product will greatly help you simplify the singles court.

The conversation starts & ends with the Center Window.

The doubles court is like an hourglass. There are two big ends, but a small neck in the middle where all the action happens. Once you learn the power of the Center Window, where you stand to start the point will take on a lot more significance.

Doubles is a lot more about situations, with four people on the court all "dancing" with one another. Learn all the best doubles patterns, broken down for the server, returner, server's partner and the returner's partner.

Doubles Situations

The "J" - the most ideal movement for the returner's partner to attack the net.

The "V" - a better way of understanding where the server's partner should move to.

Volley Targets - there are four main areas to attack. Know which ones are higher percentage. Beach Volleyball - the idea of a "setter" and "spiker" is ideal for the doubles court.

There are certain parts of the court that the ball travels to a lot, and other low percentage areas that you really don't want to cover at all - like the alley! In general, the serving team wants to keep the ball in the middle of the court as much as possible (to help the server's partner), while the returning team benefits from hitting wider and creating more chaos in the point.