Final preview from the Knoxville Challenger (indoor hard), with form, serve and return numbers and a full Tale of the Tape for every open match. Matches marked 🔒 are on today's PBTennis Patreon card. Times are as listed by the tournament schedule and may move with the order of play.
Abedallah Shelbayh vs Clement Chidekh
🧠 Form & Context
Abedallah Shelbayh
- 📊 Ranked No. 305 at 22, a left-hander, 4–6 in his last 10 and winning 51% of recent matches. Beat Milavsky in the semifinals.
- 🤝 Won their only meeting, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4 in Astana in August 2025.
- 🏆 Has beaten Giron, Gray and Milavsky on his way to the final.
- 🎯 Converts 42.7% of break points.
- ⚠️ Trails Chidekh on serve and return, and has won 43% of deciding sets this season.
Clement Chidekh
- 🔥 Ranked No. 129 at 25, 8–2 in his last 10 and winning 71% of recent matches. Beat Zheng in the semifinals.
- 🔁 The better returner: 35.2% against the first serve and 55.5% against the second, with 44.8% of break points converted.
- 🚀 Slightly stronger on serve: 68.1% on the first, 51.5% on the second (53% recently) and 59.6% of break points saved.
- 🏆 Has won 61% of deciding sets this season, 66% of best-of-three matches and 91% after taking the first set.
- ⚠️ Lost to Shelbayh in three sets in their only meeting.
🔍 Match Breakdown
A rematch of their 2025 meeting in Astana, which Shelbayh won in three sets. Chidekh is the 1.33 favourite and is ranked 176 places higher.
On serve Chidekh is slightly ahead on every line: 68.1% vs 67.8% behind the first serve, 51.5% vs 50.0% behind the second, and 59.6% vs 59.3% of break points saved. He also lands more first serves (62.3% vs 58.8%).
Chidekh is clearly the better returner: 35.2% against the first serve to 32.4%, 55.5% against the second to 52.1%, and 44.8% of break points converted to 42.7%.
The form is firmly with Chidekh: 8–2 in his last 10 against 4–6, 71% of recent matches won against 51%, and 61% of deciding sets this season against 43%.
Chidekh leads on nearly every line, which explains the price. Shelbayh has the head-to-head and has already knocked out Giron and Milavsky as the underdog this week.
📊 Tale of the Tape
| Metric | Shelbayh | Chidekh |
|---|---|---|
| Ranking | 305 | 129 |
| Age | 22 | 25 |
| Last 10 | 4–6 | 8–2 |
| Head-to-head | 1 | 0 |
| First serves in | 58.8% | 62.3% |
| 1st-serve points won | 67.8% | 68.1% |
| 2nd-serve points won | 50.0% | 51.5% |
| Break points saved | 59.3% | 59.6% |
| Break points converted | 42.7% | 44.8% |
| Return points won (career) | 40% | 43% |
| Tiebreak win % | 49% | 54% |
| Deciding-set win % (career) | 54% | 56% |
| Best-of-3 win % | 55% | 66% |
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