“One Match at a Time”: In Conversation with Arthur Fery

Is it too early to call him King Arthur?

Arthur Fery at the Winston-Salem Open | Credit: Winston-Salem Open

Arthur Fery made a name for himself when he became the second wildcard to make it to the semi-finals of Wimbledon. His prompt journey to the main stage took place at Wimbledon, where his general anonymity was erased by sudden interest from the tennis world at large. Fery quickly went from lucky local to global prospect during the world’s most prestigious tennis event.

The French-born Englishman attended King’s College in Wimbledon, England, before attending Stanford to study and further his tennis acumen. Following his success at Wimbledon, Fery has managed wins at both the Cincinnati Open and the Winston-Salem Open.

Every year, the Winston-Salem Open occurs just before the US Open, attracting top talent from around the world ahead of the year’s last major. I traveled to Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where the Winston-Salem Open takes place, and sat down with Fery to have a 1-on-1 conversation about his Fery-tale run at Wimbledon and what he hopes to achieve in the near future.

Fery, now ranked 37 in the ATP, became just the fifth Englishman to make it to a men’s Wimbledon semifinal in the Open Era.

“I never expected to make the semifinals,” Fery told Serve. “I was just taking it one match at a time."

A remarkable run comes to an end.

Congratulations on a wonderful Championships, Arthur Fery. #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/7Ah4NxLAy5

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2026

Fery’s Wimbledon run was far from easy, and included two five-set thrillers which ended in tiebreakers, or as Fery put it: “Getting through by the skin of my teeth.” The Englishman stayed strong until he faced French Open winner Alexander Zverev.

“I wasn't too distracted, just kept focusing on the task at hand. And obviously it was a surprise, but maybe deep down I knew that it was possible.”

Following his success at Wimbledon, Fery’s ATP ranking jumped by 78 places. As a result, the 24-year-old now sits in the top 40 best players in the world, granting him main draw access to the biggest tennis tournaments of the year. If he hopes to maintain this standing, however, he will need to prove he can perform at the highest level.

“I can use that [his ranking] to get into all the biggest tournaments in the world. I played Cincinnati last week, I play the US Open next week, and I'm playing Winston-Salem here this week. So, I’ve got to prove that I'm able to compete at this level every week and practice with the top players, play matches against them and just create some space for myself on this tour.”

Fery is currently locked in at the Winston-Salem Open. He battled Cruz Hewitt on Tuesday, breezing past the young Australian in straight sets. Fery faced Wake Forest alum Mees Röttgering today in the round of 16, beating him 6-3, 6-3. 

“I'm looking forward to the rest of the season; to be able to travel around the world and play all the top tournaments, and really be a top 50 player. And tennis-wise, yeah, I'm just looking to keep improving and staying healthy because I've had a lot of health issues in the past two years. So staying healthy and always improving, searching for things that I can do better, things I'm lacking compared to other top guys. I think that mindset will also keep me going in the right direction.”

Fery is flying ✈️

Wimbledon semifinalist Arthur Fery defeats Wake Forest's Rottgering 6-3 6-3 for his first QF on hard courts!#WSOpen pic.twitter.com/10Z39l1Jdz

— Winston-Salem Open (@WSOpen) August 26, 2026

The young Englishman is keen to make an impact at this year’s US Open, which starts on Sunday, August 30th following qualifiers. In the meantime, you can tune into the Winston-Salem Open to see if the Fery, who is one of a few pros using the Wilson Defyer, can capture his first ATP 250 tournament.