Denis Shapovalov is renowned as one of the cleanest ball-strikers on the ATP Tour, but where does the World No. 16’s power come from? The 23-year-old, who spearheaded Team Canada’s charge to the 2022 ATP Cup alongside Felix Auger-Aliassime, is happy to take advantage of the nutritional value of bananas when on court, but he isn’t so sold on the taste.

Shapovalov would rather be tucking into a good hamburger, but he admits it wouldn’t be him doing the cooking. Not unless eggs are involved…

In this edition of The Tour – Food Court, Shapovalov reveals to ATPTour.com how he plans his matchday meals, his favourite spot to eat in Toronto, and more.

Let’s say you have to cook something, what would you cook for dinner and why?
My gourmet skills are in scrambled eggs! That’s where my chef skills end, so I would cook some eggs.

Do you want to try and learn to cook more things?
Definitely. My girlfriend [Swedish WTA star Mirjam Bjorklund] and I keep saying we want to take some cooking classes together, but we just don’t have the time right now. Definitely down the road, it’s something that interests us both. Right now for me, I’m just in charge of making the omelettes! That’s my role.

What’s your guilty pleasure? Would you eat it every so often or very rarely?
I’ve got to say probably a good hamburger. I’ll have it once in a while, definitely not during tournaments and stuff like that, but if I finish a tournament or if I’m training, for sure. I like to go for a nice burger.

What would you put on it?
Honestly, it’s pretty simple. Obviously ketchup, mustard, tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, that’s pretty much it. And a good bun, the bun is very important. Just a good Italian or white bun. It’s got to be good quality, it’s got to be fresh. The bun is what makes or breaks it.

Do you eat something specific the night before a match, or does it not matter so much?
Yeah, there are a couple of things. Obviously, it’s not always the same thing but it’s definitely more on the healthier side. Either some pasta, some salmon and rice, or some sushi. Those are probably the three things that I kind of pick from.

What kind of sushi?
Probably just salmon avocado, or tuna.

On the day of a match, do you have to eat a certain amount of time before the match? Do you have a routine?
I like to have at least an hour and a half to digest, so I try to eat two hours before the match. I like to get my warm-up in before I eat, so I’ll kind of backtrack my day. When I want to mobilise, when I want to warm up, based off when I want to eat before my match.

During a match, has your snack routine changed? Some guys eat gels now, when they used to eat bananas, for example.
It’s always been bananas for me, unfortunately, I hate bananas! My coach growing up, Adriano, told me that it’s a big secret to winning, having a banana. I’ve followed it since that day, even though I hate it.

Did you always hate them, or just grown to hate them because you eat them so much?
I’ve never liked them. I think the hatred grew out of me always eating them. So we’ll have bananas at the house all the time, but I’ll never touch them, and I’ve never wanted to.

Have you ever tried something different?
I tried to look into more nutrition and what I could be having out on court, gels and stuff like that. But early on in my career, I got a little bit sick with food poisoning from a gel, so I went back to bananas!

Some guys have specialty drinks that they make for on court. Do you, or do you just drink water?
I have some sports drinks that I make, but I’m not really particular in what I use.

How different is your diet in a tournament week compared to a training week?
It’s different. Obviously I am not just walking around eating junk food during training weeks, but I’m not so picky during those weeks. I feel like if I just keep that diet I have during tournament weeks…I’ll go crazy if I have to do that every single week. So I try to give myself some freedom during weeks that aren’t so important.

It must be hard to stay strict with your diet for an extended period of time if you didn’t do that?
Yeah, it’s just not my personality, it’s not the way I’m built, to always follow a strict diet or routine. I’ve always been a little bit more open and enjoying changing food up [instead] of getting bored. It’s definitely just the way I am.

Is there a meal from your childhood that you still enjoy?
My mum made some really good dishes, a lot of Russian dishes really well. Mashed potatoes with some breaded chicken — probably not so Russian, but my favourite dish from her! But for Russian food, Russian dumplings were awesome.

Does MIrjam cook any Swedish stuff for you to try?
She cooks like 95 per cent of the time. Between the two of us, I just make the breakfast. She makes a really good chicken and rice that I enjoy a lot.

Maybe she’ll teach you one day…
Maybe! She makes some good steak as well.

Is there a go-to restaurant that has one meal that is your favourite thing out there?
There is a spot in Toronto that I always visit. Every time I’m there they have the best sliders that I’ve ever had in my life. The restaurant is called Joey’s. Every time I’m back in Toronto I have to visit it.

Daniil Medvedev moved a step closer to celebrating his impending return to World No. 1 with a trophy thanks to a gritty display against Ilya Ivashka in the quarter-finals at the Libema Open on Friday.

The top seed was clinical in taking his chances in a tight opening set and was resilient in defence in the second to complete a 7-6(8), 6-4 victory at the ATP 250 event in in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Although Medvedev struggled to find his free-flowing best against the World No. 41, he displayed top-class movement to frustrate his opponent and wrap up a one-hour, 51-minute victory.

“I didn’t do so good in the beginning of the first set, but finally we both managed to find our rhythm, there were great points,” said Medvedev in his on-court interview. “It was a matter of a few points where sometimes I served well or got a bit lucky at 8-8 [a net cord in the first-set tie-break], and that’s tennis sometimes. So today I was better in the deciding moments and sometimes luck was on my side, and that made a big difference.”

Regardless of how much further he progresses in The Netherlands, Medvedev is set to reclaim the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday when ranking points from 2021 Roland Garros drop. The 26-year-old feels the grass represents a big opportunity for him to solidify that position.

“I don’t have many points to defend on grass and I have some to win, so hopefully I can play well, starting here,” he said. “Every round is points and the higher you get, the more you need to step up.”

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An intriguing first set saw both players struggle to find their rhythm and four consecutive breaks from the third game reflected an error-strewn contest as neither player was able to take charge. That pattern continued into the tie-break, but it was Medvedev who found the consistency to take the set as he fended off an Ivashka set point before converting his third to edge ahead.

Medvedev struggled to regularly hit through Ivashka with his groundstrokes, ´but he stayed alert to deal with everything his opponent threw at him in the pair’s third tour-level meeting. Ivashka grew into the match and struck the ball cleanly to test the World No. 2 but Medvedev effectively nullified his power before finding a crucial moment to strike. The top seed produced a high-quality game at 5-4 in the second set, breaking to love to reach his first semi-final since Acapulco in February.

The win earned Medvedev a 2-1 lead in his ATP Head2Head series with Ivashka, who is winless in his three tour-level quarter-finals in 2022.

Medvedev’s semi-final opponent is Adrian Mannarino. The Frenchman, who won the most recent edition of the ATP 250 event in The Netherlands in 2019, earlier overcame #NextGenATP American Brandon Nakashima, 6-7(5, 6-1, 6-4.

Patience was a virtue for Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski in ‘s-Hertogenbosch on Friday.

The Dutch-British duo were made to wait until their sixth match point to seal a 6-7(4), 6-2, 14-12 quarter-final victory at the Libema Open as Mackenzie McDonald and Botic van de Zandschulp showed admirable resistance at the ATP 250 event in The Netherlands.

Koolhof and Skupski had rallied strongly in the second set to level the match after dropping the opening-set tie-break. That momentum carried them to a 9/6 advantage in the Match Tie-break, but McDonald and van de Zandschulp recovered that deficit in a dramatic climax that also saw the unseeded American-Dutch pairing let slip a match point of their own at 11/10.

Second seeds Koolhof and Skupski ultimately proved too strong, however, completing a one-hour, 47-minute win to book a semi-final against Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop. Home favourites Haase and Middelkoop are chasing their second title in the Netherlands this year after lifting the trophy in Rotterdam in February.

Raven Klaasen and Marcelo Melo upset top seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut to also book their spot in the final four. The South African-Brazilian pairing prevailed 7-6(6), 6-4 over the all-French duo in the Netherlands, where their semi-final opponents will be fourth seeds Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell. The Australians overcame Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin, 2-6, 6-4, 10-7.

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Hurkacz/Pavic Book Final Spot In Stuttgart

At the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart, Hubert Hurkacz and Mate Pavic edged Rohan Bopanna and Denis Shapovalov to book a spot in the championship match at the ATP 250 event.

Hurkacz and Pavic are playing their first tournament together this week in Germany, but the fledgling partnership stayed strong to sneak a 7-6(1), 7-6(5) semi-final triumph in south-west Germany.

The narrow defeat capped a day of mixed emotions for Bopanna and Shapovalov, who had held their nerve to clinch a 6-4, 3-6, 11-9 quarter-final victory over Aleksandr Nedovyesov and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi earlier on Friday.

Felix Auger-Aliassime advanced to his third semi-final of the season Friday, overcoming fifth seed Karen Khachanov 7-6(5), 6-4 at the Libema Open in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

The Canadian, who is making his debut at the ATP 250 grass-court event, backed up his opening-round win over Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor with an attacking performance against Khachanov. The second seed fired eight aces and broke twice to advance after one hour and 49 minutes, improving to 2-1 in his ATP Head2Head series with the 26-year-old.

Auger-Aliassime now holds a 20-8 record on grass, having advanced to finals in Stuttgart in 2019 and 2021. The World No. 9 is aiming to clinch his second title of the year this week, after triumphing in Rotterdam in February.

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The Canadian will next play Dutch wild card Tim Van Rijthoven after the World No. 205 continued his dream run with a 7-6(2), 6-4 victory over Frenchman Hugo Gaston.

“I am surprised to be in the semi-finals at an ATP event,” Van Rijthoven said. “I think the performance overall today was very good from my side. I served very well again. One game I had chances on his serve and I took the chance and served it out.”

The 25-year-old is making his ATP Tour debut this week and built on his standout wins over Matthew Ebden and Indian Wells champion Taylor Fritz by producing a strong serving display against Gaston. Van Rijthoven fired 12 aces and did not face a break point to seal victory after 83 minutes.

Prize money for Wimbledon will total a record £40,350,000 in 2022, the All England Lawn Tennis Club has announced.

The figure represents a £5,334,000 (15 per cent) increase from the 2021 edition of The Championships, and a £2,350,000 (6.2 per cent) increase on the previous record figure from 2019. The prize money is equal across the men’s and women’s draws.

The third major of the year will take place from 27 June to 10 July at the All England Club in London, where Novak Djokovic is the defending men’s singles champion. Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic are the defending men’s double’s champions.

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Matteo Berrettini’s return to Tour continued to gather pace Friday, when the Italian edged countryman Lorenzo Sonego 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach his second semi-final of the season at the BOSS Open In Stuttgart.

The World No. 10 is competing for the first time since he underwent a minor operation on his right hand in March. Despite being sidelined for three months, the 26-year-old has quickly found his range at an event he triumphed at in his only previous appearance in 2019.

“It was a really tough match,” Berrettini said in his on-court interview. “Lorenzo was playing really well. I wasn’t feeling that comfortable but it is normal. I haven’t played for three months and it isn’t easy to come back. The crowd helped me and my team is always here. I am happy with the win.”

Berrettini, who moved past Radu Albot in his opening match, took the ball early against Sonego to dictate with his powerful forehand, forcing the 27-year-old deep behind the baseline to advance after two hours and 19 minutes in their first ATP Head2Head meeting.

“It is really nice, we are playing in the best tournaments in the world against each other,” Berrettini said when discussing how he felt playing against friend Sonego. “We started playing against each other aged 10, so it is really nice to see where we are. He is a really nice guy, we hit a lot together.”

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The Italian reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January and now holds an 11-6 record on the season. He will next face Oscar Otte at the ATP 250 grass-court tournament after the German received a walkover from Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi.

Berrettini enjoyed success on the grass last year, soaring to the title at the Cinch Championships, before he reached his maiden Grand Slam final at Wimbledon.