The Greek Philosopher

Three matches and three comebacks...

What a tournament this is turning into for Stefanos. Fils, Lloyd Harris, and Lehecka... that's a tough draw! More than anything, having to face three "powerful" profiles- the ones that Tsitsipas usually struggles with due to his return and backhand issues. Yes, this tends to be really highlighted in any analysis when the Greek is facing this kind of player. Do we need to reconsider a bit? First of all, let's really give some credit to Tsitsipas; his comebacks during matches have seriously been good. Most of them have really followed the same pattern... struggling in set one and for some part of the second set. Then, it's like something just switches on and he dominates them completely, winning three sets in a row. Fils lacked energy; Harris was perhaps a bit more cooked physically after playing a lot, and Lehecka? I don't have any excuse; he simply got outplayed, and we know how much he struggles against a top-level player. Even with Fils and Harris, I really want to point out that it's Tsitsipas's level that changed the matches, more than anything else. He has been speaking a lot in the interviews about plenty of things. He can approach matches in a more relaxed manner; there are no real expectations on him, not like there were in the past. Stefanos also mentions going into matches preparing for a worst-case scenario (apparently an old Greek philosophy).

Shelton's draw has also been pretty tough. Griekspoor, Hurkacz, and Shapovalov... some big serves and firepower right there. Funnily enough, he's also won all of his matches 3-1! I think the pattern has been quite similar... he can have a few dips during the matches, which is really costly against other players who serve big. In the end, he has been the better and more consistent player in the matches, and one of his best attributes is his ability to handle the "pressure moments". I will mention that there was a little bit of a drop in level / worry about Shelton's shoulder (against Shapovalov), but according to him, it was more of a precautionary thing. Still, a bit scary, especially considering what happened in his match against Mannarino last year.

As for the matchup analysis, let's just get the first and obvious thing out of the way. Shelton, a powerful left-hander with a big serve... surely that spells danger for Tsitsipas' backhand? Well, it very well could. At the same time, his backhand has held up incredibly well so far, compared to usual. I slightly flagged it in another preview/comment before one of his matches... it feels like it's getting better. Against Lehecka, it was one of the main reasons he was able to do so well. If Tsitsipas's backhand is working, it really unlocks the rest of his game. We know that his serve and forehand are outstanding; he is also great at the net. Many opponents will try to pin him back by really focusing on his backhand... usually, he is not able to hit back with enough depth (or just an error), which leads to short balls for the opponents. When this happens, he doesn't really get to dictate play. However, when he can hold up well from that wing, he is able to get into more offensive positions, where he excels. His matches have been against physical opponents, and in a way there is a slight worry that it all catches up to him at some point during this match. However, I thought that he looked rather "fresh" at the end of the Lehecka match, so I'm not going to weigh it too heavily just yet. Shelton is playing at a good level, but not at the "Canadian-Ben" level. If Tsitsipas's backhand stays strong (as well as his serving), this could be more challenging for the American than expected...