Be honest. A year ago, had you heard of current British No 2 Jacob Fearnley? The 23-year-old from Edinburgh, a product of Texas Christian University’s impressive tennis programme, travelled back to Britain for the grass court season last June ranked a lowly 525 in the world. Even he would not have forecast the 12 months ahead.
In fact, his big break – a seven-match surge to victory at the challenger-level Nottingham Trophy – almost didn’t even get going. He only made the qualifying draw as an alternate and won his first match narrowly in a final-set tie-break. But Fearnley has not rested on his laurels, capitalising on his big break at some speed.
And the Fearnley train continued at pace at Queen’s Club on Thursday with another new milestone: a first ATP tour quarter-final. Dressed in all-black – a curious choice you might say, given the 32C sunshine in west London – the Scot rallied and kept his head above the wizardry, tomfoolery and profanity of Corentin Moutet to seal a last-eight berth in three sets, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2.
“I’m very happy to be in my first quarter-final and it’s even better to do it here in London,” he said, on-court, afterwards. “I’ve dreamed of those moments, to be standing here on this amazing court in front of these amazing fans. It’s really special.”
Beyond his Nottingham success last June – which in effect secured him a Wimbledon wild card and a Grand Slam debut – Fearnley first entered the public consciousness when he took on Novak Djokovic in the second round on Centre Court. A dream occasion, a mere six weeks after his US college finale, Fearnley did not look overawed and stretched the 24-time major winner to four sets.
From there, Fearnley’s stratospheric rise through the rankings continued. He won three challenger titles on the spin – 15 matches in a row – to leap into the top-100 by the end of 2024. This year, he reached the third round at both the Australian Open and French Open and made his Davis Cup debut in Japan, defeating Grand Slam finalist Kei Nishikori.
He has taken everything in his stride with an understated, steely demeanour. While this persona might not seem too indifferent to Scotland’s most famous tennis son, his composed existence on the court is in contrast to Andy Murray’s regular outbursts of emotion.
Beyond his heavy-hitting, quick-moving, all-court game, Fearnley’s greatest strength appears to be his self-control. A quality of staying tranquil, when the pressure is sky-high.
All the more so when Thursday’s second round clash against Moutet – the unorthodox, short-tempered Frenchman – presented a golden opportunity to reach a first quarter-final, in his 12th tour-level tournament. While the left-handed Moutet did knock out world No 4 Taylor Fritz in the opening round, Fearnley could sniff the opportunity and started out like a man on a mission.
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A quick break ahead straight away, the 23-year-old’s solidity off both wings matched up well to Moutet’s slice-heavy, variety-enthused array of enthralling shot-making. When the Frenchman is on fire, it’s captivating. When he’s not, he’s quick to lose his cool.
Fearnley took the opener comfortably, but three double faults in his opening service game of the second gifted an opening to Moutet, who did not pass up the invitation. Increasingly, the Briton was getting sucked in to quickfire net exchanges, in contrast to the more comfortable routine of baseline rallies. Fearnley was always playing catch-up and, decisively, Moutet broke again to clinch the set.
A reset was palpably needed for the decider. After a toilet break, Fearnley quickly rediscovered his accuracy on attack, sealing a key early break with a pinpoint backhand pass down the line. Moutet promptly whacked a ball out of the Andy Murray Arena and received a ball abuse warning for his troubles.
The Frenchman was running out of composure and options, throwing in an underarm serve in the midst of a double break claimed by Fearnley, with an exquisite backhand volley on the stretch having slipped at the net.
By the end, Moutet seemed to have tapped out. “I want to go home,” he said, before getting embroiled in a heated row with Egyptian umpire Adel Nour, who had already given the maverick Moutet two time violations.
Ignoring the late-match commotion, which included a vociferous spectator, Fearnley served out the match to love. Moutet threw his racket to his bench, a defeated man post-meltdown.
Fascinatingly, Fearnley plays his quarter-final opponent – world No 30 Jiri Lehecka – in doubles alongside Cameron Norrie later today. A unique first look, therefore, at what it will take to set-up a likely semi-final with compatriot and hitting partner Jack Draper in Saturday’s semi-finals.
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