Arthur Fery admits Wimbledon streak ‘will change issues’ after dropping semi closing
Arthur Fery received a standing ovation on Centre Court after his astonishing Wimbledon run finally ended in the semi finals as Alexander Zverev beat him in straight sets
Arthur Fery admitted the match was a ‘step too far’ (Image: Visionhaus/Getty Images)
After an astonishing run to the Men’s Wimbledon semi finals, Arthur Fery was knocked out by the world number three Alexander Zverev. He will rake in £900,000 in winnings and a new ranking which has leapt from 114th to 36th.
The average tennis fan would not have known Fery’s name before this year’s tournament, but a succession of knockout wins has put the 23-year-old on the map.
Centre Court gave Fery a standing ovation after losing to his German opponent 7-6, 6-2, 6-4. Despite turning in a resilient performance in the opening set, he was outclassed by the rampant Zverev who clinched the French Open title earlier this year.
“Today was tough and it still hurts like a loss, but overall a great two weeks,” said Fery after the loss.
He admitted his winning streak earlier on in the tournament “would change things for sure”, bringing with it new tour event opportunities.
“It’s going to be interesting to see how I deal with the change in expectations from the public and from friends and family,” he added. “It’s going to be crucial to have good people around me to help with the transition.”
Fery had meant to go on holiday to Greece with some mates last week, but because he was in the competition for way longer he expected he missed the European jaunt.
“Hopefully that’s still on the cards, I think my mates were secretly hoping I’d lose sooner so that I could join them out there,” he said.
The day had started full of hope, as fans filed into Wimbledon to the soundtrack of Total Eclipse of the Heart as a bloke with a boombox honoured the late Bonnie Tyler.
There were chaotic scenes on Murray Mound – known in this tournament as Arthur’s Seat – as a surge of people were turned away by groundstaff when the first semi final kicked off.
