The long-awaited one

Vacherot is going to be watched, judged, observed by the entire tennis world at the start of 2026

Will he back it up or won’t he? We’re all wondering whether Vacherot will be able to confirm his Shanghai run and establish himself as a genuinely solid player capable of shining all season long. I think it’s harder after a big break than it was in the tournaments right after Shanghai; now he’s kind of starting from scratch again. It’s also going to be a long season ahead on the main tour, he’s going to be discovering each tournament and experience at this level really matters. I think his average level of play has genuinely gone up and with all the confidence he’s built up he’s still capable of playing at a high level for a few more months before potentially dropping off. Anyway, he’s got one hell of a first round ahead of him: Korda is dangerous at the start of the season, he often does well at these events. He finished the year with a big tournament in Athens and in my opinion we’re going to have to factor him in for a strong full season. Historically Korda isn’t bad against Vacherot’s profile: constructing points intelligently and hitting from the baseline is what he likes, and he can also come forward to finish at the net, but with the quality of passing on the other side he won’t be able to afford many mistakes. His returning ability is hugely important too: if he’s getting returns in deep and quickly switching into boss-mode in the rallies, then he’s going to have a big edge. Vacherot will try to counter him, to steer the match and the tempo so that he gets into his comfort zone and especially tests him physically! Each has their own strengths.