The same desires

Michelsen and Lehecka want to rely on their serve and hit the ball hard during rallies

It's pretty funny to see that they almost said the same thing after their win in the previous round: they talk about the fact that Madrid is a different kind of clay and that every well-struck serve can win the point, which they really like. Lehecka is a bit more used to clay than Michelsen, but he prefers fast hard courts with a low bounce; he needs to hit hard and feel like it hurts his opponents. He was able to show off his power on serve and in the rallies during his tight win over Tabilo, a sluggish start to the match but after that it was the good version of Lehecka.

Michelsen was also impressive against Struff, but it was the kind of match where everything goes your way, and there was also a disastrous Struff who served badly and basically played badly overall. I don’t really feel like getting carried away after one good match from Michelsen either; yes, the conditions suit him, but he’s still very far from his best level when he plays on this surface. I think that with an opponent way stronger than Struff in front of him, we’re quickly going to see his limits this time.