Arthur Fery reflects in Cincinnati on his Wimbledon semi-final run and prepares for US Open debut
Arthur Fery spoke in Cincinnati on 25 August 2026 about his surprise run to the Wimbledon semi-finals last year and his upcoming debut in the US Open main draw this week.
A year ago Fery rose from around 300 in the world to No 36 after reaching Wimbledon’s last four, a breakthrough that followed a prolonged battle with an arm problem. “I was around 300 in the world and still really struggling with my arm,” he said, adding that he had an MRI and endured persistent pain: “I came back from an arm injury before Wimbledon 2025. I won a round at Wimbledon so that would have pushed my ranking up. But this time last year I had an MRI scan because my arm was really painful again. I was battling arm pain for a long time.”
Fery described two years of interrupted schedules that left him doubting his trajectory and forced adjustments in his mentality. “Definitely. Between 2023 and 2025 I barely played a full schedule because of my arm. I was battling for two years and it’s still not completely resolved. But it’s on the way there. It’s getting better and I’m able to play a lot of tournaments. "There was definitely a lot of doubt and some moments where you just can’t find a way out, or see a way of improving things. It’s difficult. But that helped shape me as a warrior who has a good mentality – even though I wish [the arm injury] had never happened.”
His Wimbledon run included victories over Grigor Dimitrov and Flavio Cobolli, the world No 10, to reach the semi-finals, and Fery said he had faith in his level despite limited match practice. “I always had belief in my level,” he said, while also noting that lack of playing time had hampered his ability to perform at his best.
Fery lost in straight sets to Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals, and he assessed the match in terms of both tennis and confidence. “I knew that day was definitely a step up in terms of opponent but I was able to stick with him in the first. I’d been broken early but I broke back and stayed him until the tie-break. "Yes, my level dropped a little in that tie-break and his average level was so high, with his full quality so high on both wings and with the serve. If mine dropped by even 5% I was in trouble. I lost that tiebreak 7-0 and then it was tough to fully believe, 100%, like I did in my other matches. I was obviously playing the No 3 in the world and the French Open champion. So I had to face a tennis issue as much as the mental one.”
Since Wimbledon, Fery has returned to tour events and reached the third round in Cincinnati this year, losing 7-5, 7-6 to the world No 8 Alex de Minaur after a run of five consecutive games in the second set. He also recorded a grinding victory over James Duckworth in Cincinnati and recalled how, a year earlier, he had entered a draw at short notice and beaten Zachary Svajda 7-6 in the third before losing to Martin Landaluce in qualifying.
Fery won his first Challenger title in Barranquilla, earning $14,000 (£10,260) and rising to No 237, and he contrasted that with the $36,100 he made in Cincinnati and the £900,000 he received for reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals. On the nature of the lower-level events he said: “Challengers are really difficult and everyone is really hungry to win and it’s tough. The conditions are not as good as they are on tour – where everyone wants to be. So a lot of players there are tough to beat. The average level is a little lower than the ATP tour but the willpower and hunger to win is very high.”
Fery recalled junior matches and assessed areas for improvement ahead of the US Open, citing specific technical and physical targets alongside ranking ambitions. He remembered losing in the juniors to Liam Draxl 7-6, 6-1 and said of his development: “I can improve my game on clay, for example, which will be very important. I also need to get better at dealing with high balls, serving better, being able to play long matches in a row more.” He noted his stature — “I am only 1.75 metres (5ft 9in) tall” — compared with taller opponents such as Zverev at 1.98 metres (6ft 6in), then added: “But there are other things that I can do better than them when using my height. I return very well, I can move very well because of how low to the ground I am. But I need to work on my mindset, taking the ball early, using my hand skills, things like that.”
Fery also outlined his ranking goals, saying he began the year at No 180 and achieved his initial target of top 100, and now seeks further consolidation. “We haven’t spoken about ranking goals since Wimbledon. I started the year at No 180 and I wanted to be top 100 by the end of the year. I’ve got that done but I now need to stabilise as a top 30 player and then push on because there are a lot of things I feel like I do better than those players above me. But there are also lots of things where I’m not as good as them.”
He will make his senior grand slam debut in the US Open main draw after Wimbledon elevated his standing, a step he said came with both new demands and familiar challenges. The tournament in New York begins this week and Fery enters the main draw, narrowly missing a seeding, as he seeks to build on the form that produced last year’s Wimbledon semi-final.