How's it going, Val?

Vacherot has lost his mojo. Since his injury and excellent Monte Carlo tournament, he’s only won three small matches. The most recent loss: Vallejo in Cincinnati. It’s worrying, not because it was Vallejo—the Paraguayan was playing well—but because the level of play from Val was far too poor. The Monegasque went crazy angry, feeling powerless. Physically, you can see he no longer has the engine he used to. And his tennis is messy. The solidity that made his reputation has disappeared. He gets frustrated. And then plays even worse.

On Kova’s side, it’s kind of the opposite slope. The American has found some form again in Winston-Salem, after we’d last seen him on a really bad note against Nakashima. He’s never done anything special at the US Open. I think he’s a guy who’s not really suited to the format with his slightly risky game. Yet he can play at a very good level. But it’s true that I prefer him on indoor hard in best-of-three. Here, he’s going to have to deal with a Val who wants to regain confidence and will do everything not to miss and to get back into rhythm. I would’ve preferred him to have his confident aggression against Kova. But when things aren’t going well, your DNA comes out. And Val’s DNA is to weather the storm and serve well. Just one small problem: at what level will Val be able to play his game?