Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares reach US Open final, despite lack of practice

Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares celebrate after winning the men’s doubles semi-final at the US Open in New York. Picture: Seth Wenig/AP

The Scot will go head to head with fellow Brit Joe Salisbury in Friday’s final after both came through their semi-finals.

It will be the first meeting of two Britons in a major men's doubles final in the open era, but they are familiar opponents.

Salisbury and American partner Rajeev beat Murray and Soares in their only previous ATP meeting earlier this year in the Australian Open semi-finals.

The fourth seeds defeated American pair Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 in the first semi-final in Louis Armstrong Stadium on Thursday.

Murray and Soares then ousted Australian John Peers and Slovak Filip Polasek 6-3 3-6 6-4 to join them.

“We are super-happy to win,” said 35-year-old Murray. “It’s an amazing opportunity to play in a grand slam final again – that's for us what tennis is about and we can't wait."

Murray and his Brazilian partner won both the Australian Open and US Open together in 2016, but Murray has partnered fellow Briton Neal Skupski in the past two tournaments in New York.

Despite reuniting, Murray and Soares did not have much training time together before this grand slam after the Brazilian came down with appendicitis, missing the Olympics in Japan to have his appendix removed.

He has not played since Wimbledon. “The less he practises the better he plays,” joked Murray afterwards.

“It has been such a stop-start year for us – this is why we came back together, to win big tournaments. The opportunity to play in a grand slam final again is so exciting.”

The pair say they will now prepare for the final by playing football with Soares’ son Noah, who celebrated with his dad on court after yesterday’s semi-final victory.

Salisbury and American Ram, who lifted the trophy in Toronto last month and emerged victorious at the 2020 Australian Open, did not face a break point and converted their only opportunity to triumph after one hour and 18 minutes.

"It's really exciting," said Salisbury, who claimed his first major doubles title with 37-year-old Ram at the 2020 Australian Open, before finishing runners-up this year.

He is trying to become the first man to win men's doubles and mixed doubles titles in the same year at the US Open since 2010, when Bob Bryan accomplished the feat. "We are going to do everything we can to prepare,” he added.

Ram and Salisbury have made the semi-finals in five of the past seven majors. This will be their third grand slam final as a team.

“It helps a lot,” Ram said of their experience together. “We are feeling like in these positions we have been there before, and now it's going to be our third final together. I think experience never hurts when you feel like you can draw on something that's happened before.”