Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares have claimed 12 tour-level titles as a duo since 2016. But when it comes to cooking skills, they might struggle to come up with a baker’s dozen worth of meals to put on the menu.

The successful British/Brazilian pairing nonetheless enjoys a wide array of cuisine and in this edition of The Tour – Food Court, ATPTour.com caught up with the doubles stars to grill them on a few of their favourites.

If you were having some buddies over for dinner, what would you cook and why?
Bruno: I don’t cook. I would order sushi because it’s my favourite food. I just love sushi, been eating sushi for a long time. It’s a big part of my diet. I think it just goes well with sports. It’s nice, healthy and light. I love it.

Jamie: I would do barbecue because that’s about the only thing I can manage. I would do steak, for sure, picanha.

Would you call yourself a good cook?
Jamie: Not at all. My wife’s an amazing cook, she cooks all the time. I just eat it.

Bruno: Jamie’s an amazing eater! (Laughs.)

Jamie: That’s my strength.

Bruno, do you have anything in your repertoire in the kitchen?
Bruno: I actually do a decent barbecue as well. That’s pretty much all I can manage. Also some very basic stuff, eggs, omelettes. Anything more complicated, I’m a no-go.

We talked about sushi being super healthy… How about the opposite? What cheat meals do you enjoy?
Jamie: I’ve got a pretty sweet tooth. Chocolates, desserts… I’d go all in for that.

Bruno: I have to control the sweets as well, like a good condensed milk, anything related to that… dulce de leche. I also like a good burger. But a burger is easier for me to control. Sweets are tough — got to keep an eye on that.

What about when you’re being careful about what you eat? Do you have a go-to meal the night before a big match, or the day of?
Jamie: The night before, as long as I get a good meal, it could be anything. It could be steak, sushi, Mexican, fish. I’m not really picky about that at all. It’s more just before we play, I don’t tend to eat things that are too heavy.

Bruno: The same for me. I think the night before, any good, healthy meal. Before the match, it really depends what time we play. If we play right after breakfast, like the first match at 11, I’ll just have my normal breakfast, which is an omelette, bread, maybe an avocado or something. And if we play after lunch, my lunch will be something lighter, maybe a bowl of rice just to get ready for the match. I won’t eat anything quite heavy.

What are your no-gos? Is there anything in particular you won’t eat?

Bruno: I don’t think there’s a food that I don’t eat, to be honest. I can eat everything. I try to avoid junky food a lot, or processed food, fast food. I feel like because I enjoy sushi so much, I kind of have a healthy diet most of the time. The other times I try not to go over the line too many times.

Jamie: Spicy foods, I can never handle that.

What about food from your country, your culture? Are there any particular dishes that you like?

Jamie: We’re not known so much for our food culture (laughs). I guess growing up I was eating a lot of salmon, Scottish salmon. Haggis, I guess.

Bruno: For me would be the acai for sure. This is a very Brazilian thing. I’ve been eating acai since I was eight, 10 years old. Super healthy, super good. Grew up with it. I try to have it every day.

It’s a berry from the amazon. It’s a fruit. There’s a lot of energy; it’s considered a super food. What we do is, you make a bowl out of it, and it’s amazing. It grows only in two parts of Brazil, in two states, and not even the whole year. It’s three months of the year that you can get it. So it’s quite an interesting process, the acai culture. I love it.

Jamie, has he gotten you into acai? 
Jamie: Yeah, I like it. It’s nice. It’s definitely a lot more common in the U.K. now than what it used to be. You don’t have to hustle that hard to find it. But I like it. It’s good stuff. 

Bruno, I understand you’re involved in an acai business? Can you tell me a little more about that?
Bruno: Like I said, I’ve been eating acai my whole life. And I’ve always wanted to invest in an acai business. Never really found anything until I had Oakberry for the first time.

I have a company myself that we have some investments back home in Brazil. When I started having Oakberry for the first time, I went there as a client, had my first bowl there. Really liked the concept.

Long story short, a couple of months after, we invested in the company. It’s been a great ride since we started with them. It’s growing quite fast. We finished last year with over 500 shops worldwide. It’s quite nice. Oakberry is part of my life now, a lot. Not only business-wise, but my diet as well.

Are you involved in the day-to-day operations?
Bruno: I’m pretty hands-on. Not day to day on the company’s daily routine. But I’m quite involved in specific projects that we do together to help the company grow.

With college basketball’s March Madness down to the final four in the U.S., so too is the second leg of the March Masters at the Miami Open presented by Itau. Defending champion Hubert Hurkacz bounced top seed Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals to keep his repeat bid alive, while Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud and Francisco Cerundolo are still on course for a first ATP Masters 1000 title. 

Friday’s singles semi-finals are the only men’s matches on the schedule on Day 10 in Miami.

View Schedule | View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw

[8] Hubert Hurkacz (POL) vs. [14] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)

Hurkacz rides a 10-match winning streak into this semi-final showdown as he prepares to face one of the ATP Tour’s hottest players under the Miami sun. The Pole has won three tie-breaks en route to the last four, dropping just one set — to 29th seed Aslan Karatsev — on his way. The 25-year-old seemingly can’t lose in Miami, as he’s also through to Saturday’s doubles final alongside partner John Isner.

Hukacz is thriving under the slow conditions in South Florida, and the same can be said for Carlos Alcaraz, who nurtured his game on Spain’s clay courts in his youth. Though he’s played just one match in Hard Rock Stadium, the fiery 18-year-old has quickly become a fan favourite in Miami as he’s powered through Marin Cilic, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Miomir Kecmanovic to reach back-to-back Masters 1000 semi-finals following his Indian Wells run.

“I think that I’m playing in Spain,” Alcaraz said of the stadium crowd’s support in his 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(5) quarter-final win over Kecmanovic. “It’s unbelievable. The energy that they push to me, it was crazy. I think without them it would not be possible to get into the semi-final today.”

Hurkacz also made sure to give some love to the crowd following his 7-6(7), 6-3 win over Medvedev — a result that denied Medvedev the chance to reclaim the top spot in the ATP Rankings, and improved Hurkacz to 4-0 against Top 10 opponents in Miami.

“I love the atmosphere here. I don’t know. Just feels so good and playing my good tennis here,” the Pole said. “Definitely enjoy the full crowds here this year.”

The pair will open their ATP Head2Head account when they meet on Friday evening, with no rest day following their quarter-final wins. Alcaraz, now 16-2 on the season, is bidding for his second ATP Tour title of 2022 following his Rio de Janeiro crown in February. Hurkacz enters at 14-5, his best prior result coming in a semi-final run in Dubai. The World No. 10 could become the fifth man to repeat in Miami, following Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras. 

Alcaraz, already the third-youngest semi-finalist at the event, could become the youngest champion in its 37-year history. Only two men have won an ATP Masters 1000 title at a younger age — Michael Chang (1990, Toronto) and Rafael Nadal (2005, Monte Carlo) were also 18 on their first triumphs. Alcaraz turns 19 on May 5.

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[6] Casper Ruud (NOR) vs. Francisco Cerundolo (ARG)

Sixth seed Casper Ruud and Argentine Francisco Cerundolo will both be aiming to reach their first ATP Masters 1000 final when they face off on Friday.

Norwegian star Ruud will enter the clash with far more big-match experience, having captured seven tour-level titles and competed in three Masters 1000 semi-finals before.

However, Cerdundolo has flourished as the underdog on his Masters 1000 debut in Florida. The 23-year-old, who triumphed at an ATP Challenger Tour event in January, has scored sizeable wins this week over Tallon Griekspoor, Reilly Opelka (second-set retirement), Gael Monfils, Frances Tiafoe and Jannik Sinner (first-set retirement due to foot blisters).

“It means a lot [to advance],” Cerundolo said after reaching the semi-finals. “It is everything I have dreamed of. My first Masters 1000, my first semi-final, I might rise to near No. 50 [in the ATP Rankings]. This is going to change everything for me.”

Cerundolo arrived in Miami holding a 0-2 tour-level record on hard courts, but the World No. 103 now looks at home on the surface. His fairytale run means he is the lowest-ranked men’s singles semi-finalist in tournament history (1985-2019, 2021-22) and the first player to reach the singles semi-finals on his Masters 1000 debut since Jerzy Janowicz advanced to the final at the Rolex Paris Masters in 2012.

If the Argentine wants to match Janowicz’s achievement he will have to overcome World No. 8 Ruud in what will be the first ATP Head2Head meeting between the pair.

The 23-year-old, who is making his third appearance in Miami, earned the biggest win of his career by ATP Ranking when he eliminated World No. 4 Alexander Zverev 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 to reach the last four.

“It feels good and it means a lot,” Ruud said following his victory over the German. “This is my first semi-final in a Masters 1000 on hard courts, so that’s a good feeling. I’m very happy to do it here in Miami.

“I’ve felt good the couple weeks I’ve been here practising and the matches have felt very good. I want to of course keep going. Today was my toughest challenge yet of the tournament and on Friday will be another big one. I hope that I can take what I’ve learned from my three previous [Masters 1000] semi-finals and bring it into Friday’s match.”

This week in Florida, Ruud has also dispatched Henri Laaksonen, Alexander Bublik and Cameron Norrie in straight sets.

The Norwegian has continued to make steady progress this year after enjoying a standout 2021 season, which saw him crack the Top 10, clinch five tour-level titles and advance to the semi-finals on debut at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

So far in 2022, he has earned ATP Cup wins over Dusan Lajovic and Cristian Garin in January, before he triumphed in Buenos Aires. When Ruud takes to court against Cerundolo on Hard Rock Stadium, it will be the first time he has played a Masters 1000 semi-final on hard, having reached the last four at clay-court events in Rome (2020), Monte-Carlo (2021) and Madrid (2021).

ORDER OF PLAY – FRIDAY APRIL 1, 2022

STADIUM start 1:00 pm
ATP – [6] Casper Ruud (NOR) vs. Francisco Cerundolo (ARG)

Not Before 3:00 pm
WTA – [1] Veronika Kudermetova / Elise Mertesn (BEL) vs. [4] Cori Gauff (USA) / Catherine McNally (USA)

Not Before 7:00 pm
[8] Hubert Hurkacz (POL) vs. [14] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)
Ekaterina Alexandrova / Zhaoxuan Yang (CHN) vs. Laura Siegemund (GER) / Vera Zvonareva

Carlos Alcaraz continued his run of torrid tennis with a 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(5) quarter-final victory over Miomir Kecmanovic on Thursday evening as he made a winning debut in Hard Rock Stadium at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

“I think that I’m playing in Spain,” Alcaraz said of the crowd’s tremendous support. “It’s unbelievable. The energy that they push to me, it was crazy. I think without them it would not be possible to get into the semifinals today.”

Alcraz was two points from defeat at 4-5, 15/30, and again at 5/3 in the tie-break, where he twice trailed by a mini-break. But he was brave and bold at the crucial moments, winning the final four points of the match and sealing the deal in spectacular fashion with a pushed passing shot on the dead run. The 18-year-old dropped to his knees in celebration after moving within two victories of his first ATP Masters 1000 title.

“Miomir was playing unbelievable,” the Spaniard reflected after his first meeting with the Serb. “I knew that I had to put a good level from my side. He had chances to win the match. I did a great shot at 4-5 in the third set, 15/30,” he added, referencing a fearless down-the-line backhand winner that helped him dig out of that hole.

Alcaraz’s imprint on the match was highlighted by his 52/40 winners-to-unforced-errors count as he looked for every opportunity to attack. Kecmanovic, who did his best to keep his opponent on the back foot, registered a 19/16 mark.

Both men were competing in consecutive ATP Masters 1000 quarter-finals following deep runs in Indian Wells, and the Spaniard has now equalled his career-best showing at that level by again reaching the final four. Alcaraz did not have a Miami win to his name entering this year’s event, but has now strung together four in a row to improve his record on the season to a red-hot 16-2.

Just as he did in a fourth-round win against Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alcaraz went to the drop shot at many crucial moments against Kecmanovic.

“The rest of the match I’m trying to hit the ball hard to push the opponent off the baseline,” he said of his strategy to set up those delicate change-ups. “The drop shot is good for me. I have confidence with that shot. In the tough moments, you have to hit the best shots that you have.”

Kecmanovic provided a stern test for the 18-year-old, who surrendered a set for the first time in the tournament. But after racing through the opening three games of the match and recovering a late mini-break in the opening tie-break, the Serb could not get over the line against the all-action Alcaraz.

After some early miscues, the Spaniard locked in early in the second set as he turned the tables on his opponent to take a 3-0 lead of his own. Both men were able to attack effectively on serve as the rest of the set did not see a break point, until Alcaraz saved one in serving out the set. A whipped forehand winner wiped out the opportunity and helped force a final set.

The deciding set did not see a single break point, though both men twice battled through 30/30, including in consecutive games late in the stanza. Alcaraz never led in the tie-break until match point.

Following the victory, he signed the camera for his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and Ferrero’s father Eduardo, who recently passed away, keeping the former World No. 1 from travelling to Miami. 

Alcaraz will now have less than 24 hours to recover before returning to the stadium court to face defending champion Hubert Hurkacz, a 7-6(7), 6-3 winner over World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev earlier on Thursday.

Daniil Medvedev entered Thursday’s quarter-final knowing a win against Hubert Hurkacz would see him return to the top spot in the ATP Rankings following the Miami Open presented by Itau.

But struggling physically in Hard Rock Stadium, the 25-year-old dropped a 7-6(7), 6-3 decision which will keep him behind Novak Djokovic at World No. 2. 

“For me was more important in a way just to win the match itself than to become a No. 1 by winning the match,” said Medvedev, who was not focussed on a return to the top spot. “I saw it more as a bonus. So I don’t feel like I was tight or anything because of this. To be honest, I played a lot of matches where I had the pressure, different [types], and it’s not like something new happened today in terms of like going out of court and feeling crazy tight or something. So I don’t think that nerves were part of this.”

Medvedev had to deal with dizziness and fatigue during the match, and was disappointed not to be able to produce his best tennis at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

“All the match I was not feeling my best. But, you know, sometimes it happens,” he told the press. “I don’t know the actual reason. Maybe the heat. But I was feeling super, like, dizzy, tired, and there was this long game where I couldn’t serve anymore. Then in the locker room I was cramping quite much, so physically was not easy. But at the same time, that’s part of the game.”

Despite the result, Medvedev was happy with his performance in Miami on the whole and feels that his game is trending in the right direction after a 4-2 stretch across Acapulco and Indian Wells.

“I’m kind of happy about the tournament in Miami in a way of tennis … I managed in Miami to find just a little spark to try to make it work. Today was not enough, but I’m happy that I saw that I’m able to do it.”

With few ATP Rankings points to defend during the upcoming clay swing, Medvedev will have every opportunity to fight to reclaim the No. 1 spot in the coming months.

“I’m in the right direction, so it’s good,” he said to conclude his press conference.

Hubert Hurkacz moved to within two wins of retaining his Miami Open presented by Itau title on Thursday as he ended Daniil Medvedev’s World No. 1 bid in empathic fashion on Hard Rock Stadium.

In a tight quarter-final battle, the Pole produced an intense and aggressive performance against Medvedev as he clubbed his groundstrokes and finished points at the net to triumph 7-6(7), 6-3 in two hours and two minutes.

The south Florida sun brings the best out of Hurkacz, with the eighth seed now 10-0 at the tournament since 2021, having captured his maiden ATP Masters 1000 crown in Miami last year. This week, the 25-year-old has eliminated Arthur Rinderknech, Aslan Karatsev, Lloyd Harris and Medvedev, with his quarter-final win over the top seed levelling their ATP Head2Head series at 2-2.

“I think the return was crucial. I was able to make a lot of returns and get some free points on my serve, because having rallies with Daniil is fun, but they get long,” Hurkacz said on his on-court interview. “It is good I was able to get some free points.

“I have spent a lot of time in Florida, so I am used to the humidity. I think the conditions were in my favour today, so I tried to use them.”

Medvedev spent three weeks as the World No. 1 from 28 February to 21 March this year before he relinquished the spot to Novak Djokovic. Victory over Hurkacz would have moved Medvedev back to tennis’ summit on Monday.

However, the four-time Masters 1000 champion – who was aiming to reach the semi-finals in Miami for the first time – never found top gear against Hurkacz as he struggled to fully impose his baseline game on the Pole.

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Hurkacz will play either #NextGenATP Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz or Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic in the last four as he aims to win his first trophy of the season. The World No. 10 clinched three tour-level crowns in 2021. But his best result this year before Miami was a run to the semi-finals in Dubai.

“Carlos has been playing some amazing tennis this year, only played good matches I think, so that would be super tough,” Hurkacz said. “But Kecmanovic played some super tennis in Indian Wells and he is now backing that up here in Miami. It will be interesting.”

It is just the second time Hurkacz has defeated a Top 2 opponent, with his other win coming against then-World No. 2 Medvedev at Wimbledon in July.

In an entertaining first set, Hurkacz flew into a 3-0 lead as he pulled Medvedev from corner to corner with his heavy ball striking. From 5-2 ahead and seemingly in control though, the World No. 2 showed everybody why he is a 13-time tour-level champion as he hit with greater depth to force a more nervy Hurkacz into errors.

However, the 25-year-old recomposed himself and edged a tight tie-break, receiving a slice of luck at 7/7 when his mis-hit forehand dropped awkwardly at the feet of Medvedev, who could only hit his half-volley long.

Hurkacz continued to play aggressively at the start of the second set as he pressurised Medvedev with deep returns. In a mammoth fifth game, the Pole fired the ball into the corners, stayed patient and eventually gained the break on his sixth break point of the game. He then powered through his final service games and broke a tiring Medvedev again to seal his standout win.

Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski continued their strong start to the season by reaching their fourth tour-level final of the year on Thursday at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

The sixth seeds recovered from a second-set dip to move past Italians Simone Bolelli 6-1, 3-6, 10-5 in 76 minutes. Koolhof and Skupski have now won five of the six Match Tie-breaks that they have contested in 2022, demonstrating their fighting qualities.

The Dutch-British pair has tasted great success since they teamed for the first time at the beginning of the year, winning tour-level titles together in Melbourne, Adelaide and Doha.

In a tight clash against Bolelli and Fognini, Koolhof and Skupski hit three aces and won 89 per cent (25/28) of their first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

They have dropped just one set this week in Miami and will next face Australian Open champions Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios or Hubert Hurkacz and John Isner in the final on Sunday.