Analysis: Jódar may regret what he did in the third set against Cobolli
Not a very good match for Rafa, who in the third set against Cobolli resembled less the Rafa we usually know.
The participation of Rafa Jódar in the ATP Cincinnati tournament came to an end with a loss to Flavio Cobolli. On a day more reminiscent of Shapovalov than Tabilo, the Madrid player did not have the best feelings and will head to the US Open not with the same vibe as when he started the tour. Clearly, Jódar has been on a downward trend during this pre-New York tour, which is completely understandable given the wear and tear from the number of matches played.
Analyzing the match, it's clear how today Rafa was less Rafa. The Jódar we know is a player who always seeks to take the initiative and be offensive, not giving his opponents a moment to breathe, but today the Spaniard's rest and serve did not support him in that mission, and as a result, both his forehand and backhand faltered along with the rest of his game.
In the third set, Jódar let Cobolli in
After a good start to the match, without too many theatrics, Jódar may regret letting Cobolli in and allowing him to be more aggressive. The Italian became more confident in his shots and surged forward from the tiebreak, ultimately deserving the victory as he carried the greater weight of the match through his racket.
In the third set, Rafa played very short as we can see in the Insights data from TennisViz. A total of 31% of Jódar's shots in the third set landed in the service box area, eight percentage points higher than his average. Only 21% landed in the baseline area, which shows how short he was playing, allowing Flavio to play almost at will.
Only when Rafa found himself 2-5 down in the score did he play a bit more freely and be more aggressive, but that 31% attack rate from Cobolli (up from 20% in the first set) shows that the Italian went for the victory while the Madrid player was left somewhat halfway as the number of errors continued to rise. In total, Rafa committed 48 unforced errors today. Uncharacteristic of what he usually is.
Trying to find the positive side to all this, Rafa was practically eliminated in the first round of this tournament, so these two rounds came a bit unexpectedly. He will surely take with him the comeback he made against Shapovalov a few nights ago to rest for a US Open that begins in 11 days.
That is what Jódar needs, a bit of rest because it is true that except for the day with Tabilo, both against Nakashima and Shapovalov and today against Cobolli, he seemed to be running low on fuel. His chances for the US Open can only grow if he recharges his energy and shows the level he had in Washington or during the middle stages of Montreal, in the matches against Lehecka, Musetti, and Fils. That is the way forward.
This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Análisis: Jódar puede lamentarse de lo que hizo en el tercer set ante Cobolli