Food Court: Struff’s Healthy Habits & Soft Spot For Pepperoni Pizza

Jan-Lennard Struff will open his Wimbledon campaign on Monday against fifth seed Carlos Alcaraz. It will be the pair’s second ATP Head2Head meeting, with the German previously defeating Alcaraz in the 2021 Roland Garros third round.

The 32-year-old achieved a career-high Pepperstone ATP Ranking of No. 29 in 2020 and reached his first ATP Tour final on home soil in Munich last May. Playing in the Wimbledon main draw for the ninth time this fortnight, Struff is seeking to advance beyond the first round for the fourth time, including a pair of third-round runs in 2018 and 2019.

Before the action heats up at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, find out what Struff likes to cook and eat to prepare himself for competition.

If you were having some friends over for dinner, what would you cook for them?
I like Caprese salad a lot. It’s pretty easy to do, I would say. Depends who’s coming over.

For myself, I always cook pasta and some fresh vegetables or something like this. I like macaroni a lot. I like vegan meats, something like this with cheese on top and maybe bolognese sauce; something plant-based

It sounds like you know your way around the kitchen pretty well. Would you call yourself a good cook?
No, I’m not that good but I can cook some things. Maybe some chicken… I would do it with vegetables and rice with teriyaki sauce.

Do you cook often at home?
Sometimes with my girlfriend I cook. She’s cooking more often.

So far you’ve mentioned a lot of healthy meals. Do you have a particular cheat meal that you enjoy?
Pizza with pepperoni and a coke. Good Italian pizza.

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What about when you need to be careful about what you eat? Do you have a go-to meal the night before a big match?
I like sushi or rice. Some grains or some salmon.

What do you like to eat on the day of a match?
In the morning I have a light breakfast. It depends what time I’m playing. If I just have the breakfast, I eat a bit more. But I try to get some wheat bread or yogurt.

If I eat in the afternoon, some plain pasta, sometimes some rice. I like salmon as well, but not too much.

During a match, what do you consume to help keep you going?
I drink my stuff — electrolytes — and sometimes have some bars. Sometimes I will have a few dates and bananas.

Back off the court… if you were to go out to a nice restaurant, what is one of your favourite orders?
Depends on the style, which type of restaurant. But I like to eat good steak, some cream spinach maybe. Vegetables, maybe some potatoes.

What about food from your country or culture? Are there any particular dishes that you like?
Some sausages. Bratwurst, for a soccer game… I sometimes eat it at the stadium. Schnitzel is always nice, but Austrian is better. But still I like it a lot. And potatoes, I think they’re very healthy.