Arthur Fery has taken inspiration from Emma Raducanu’s sensational US Open victory after his sensational run as a wildcard to the Wimbledon semi-finals.
Fery has grasped his chance over the past 10 days, transforming his reputation on the sport’s biggest stage, having won just two grand slam matches before.
But after dispatching Flavio Cobolli in straight sets, further defying his position as the 114th player in the world rankings, Fery is one win away from reaching the final ahead of Friday’s semi-final with French Open champion Alex Zverev.
But Fery is relaxed and is confident after recalling Raducanu’s run to glory at Flushing Meadows in 2021.
“My memory of it was that it was impressive how she didn’t let the occasion get to her,” Fery said after his quarter-final victory. “She would just keep going match after match, playing well, beating top players. That was until the title.
“It’s very tough to do when you’re not used to being on the stage, on such a big stage. She did it great when she won the US Open.
“Yeah, I’ve been trying to do that, as well. Just take it match by match, play my game, put what I do best on court, yeah, keep doing that.”
And Fery is bullish about his chances against Zverev, despite the formidable task that awaits him on Centre Court, noting key improvements in his game.
“It’s something that I’ve really improved in my game to, yeah, more generally being on defense and being more comfortable being on defence,” Fery remarked.
“Yeah, playing big servers is something I’ve really improved on, accepting sometimes getting aced a lot, and having more pressure on my service games, because I know they run through theirs sometimes easily. Yeah, I’m a great returner, I think. Just try to apply pressure that way.
“I was down, not today but in the matches before, I was down and close to losing. Yeah, I managed to stay in the match, fight well, put pressure and make them win the match.
“Obviously I have the crowd behind me here, which is a huge help, especially on Centre Court, when you have so many people pushing me. I’ve been trying to use the crowd to my advantage in important moments, just to add a little pressure maybe to the opponents.
“Yeah, I’ll try and do that again at moments that feel right on Friday.”
