Question 1

How do qualifications work in a tournament?

Accepted Answer

Before the main draw, a tournament holds qualifying rounds (usually 3 rounds). Players who win all their qualifying matches enter the main draw and are marked [Q]. If a main draw player withdraws before their first match, a 'Lucky Loser' (last qualifier to lose) can take their place, marked [LL].

Question 2

What is the difference between seeding and ranking?

Accepted Answer

The ranking (e.g. #29) is the player's current world ranking on the ATP or WTA tour. The seed (e.g. [27]) is a number assigned by tournament organizers at the time of the draw. Some higher-ranked players may not enter the tournament, shifting the seed numbers. For example, a player ranked #29 can be seeded 27th. Important: seeds are relative to the draw. In qualifying, the highest-ranked player among qualifiers will be seed [1], even if she is ranked 70th or 100th in the world. This is normal: seeding only applies to players in that specific draw. [Q] indicates a player who came through qualifying.

Question 3

What do BO3 and BO5 mean?

Accepted Answer

BO3 (Best of 3) means the first player to win 2 sets wins the match. BO5 (Best of 5) requires 3 sets won. Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, Roland-Garros, Wimbledon, US Open) are played in BO5 for men, while all other ATP tournaments and all WTA tournaments are played in BO3. At 6-6 in a set, a tie-break (first to 7 points) decides. In the final set, some tournaments use a super tie-break to 10 points.

Question 4

How does the surface affect the game?

Accepted Answer

There are 4 types of surfaces: hard court (Australian Open, US Open) offers balanced play; clay (Roland-Garros) slows the ball and favors long rallies; grass (Wimbledon) speeds up play and benefits servers; indoor hard court reduces wind effects and offers consistent conditions. Each player has surface preferences that influence their performance.

Question 5

What is the difference between ATP and WTA?

Accepted Answer

The ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) runs the men's tour, the WTA (Women's Tennis Association) runs the women's tour. Tournaments are categorized: Grand Slams (4 per year, most prestigious), Masters 1000 (ATP) / WTA 1000 (9 major events), then ATP 500, ATP 250, and their WTA equivalents. The higher the category, the more ranking points and prize money are at stake.

Question 6

How do I read the odds on ScoreShark?

Accepted Answer

Odds are displayed in decimal format (e.g. 1.50, 2.80). The lower the odds, the more the player is considered a favorite by bookmakers. For example, odds of 1.30 mean the player is a strong favorite, while odds of 3.50 indicate an underdog. On ScoreShark, the favorite is displayed in green (lime) for quick reading. Odds evolve in real-time based on bets and available information.

Question 7

How do the analyses and predictions work?

Accepted Answer

Our analyses take into account multiple factors: player ranking and recent form, detailed statistics (serve percentage, return points won, etc.), head-to-head history (H2H), tournament surface, and playing conditions. This data is cross-referenced to provide an informative prediction. Our predictions are not betting advice.

Question 8

What does H2H (head-to-head) mean?

Accepted Answer

H2H (Head-to-Head) is the complete history of all matches between two players. It shows the number of wins for each player and details of every match (score, tournament, surface, date). H2H is an important indicator because some players have a psychological or stylistic advantage over others, regardless of ranking.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Understanding Tennis

Understanding ScoreShark