A Historic Moment for British Tennis
Arthur Fery is heading to his first ATP Tour final after a dramatic semi-final at the Winston-Salem Open ended with Australian opponent James Duckworth retiring through injury. Fery was in control at 6-4, 2-1 when Duckworth, who had already called for a medical timeout after the opening set, could not continue. The 24-year-old Briton becomes the first player from Great Britain to reach the final of this North Carolina hard-court event.
Fery was gracious in victory, saying he was genuinely pleased to advance but made clear the outcome was not how he envisioned getting there. He wished Duckworth a speedy recovery before turning his focus to Saturday's championship match.
Remarkable Rise Heading Into the US Open
The result caps a stunning few months for Fery. Only eight weeks before his surprise run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July, he was sitting outside the world top 100. He has since climbed to a career-high ranking of 33rd and has overtaken Cameron Norrie to become Britain's top-ranked player.
Standing between Fery and his first title is Peru's Ignacio Buse, 22, who dispatched France's Benjamin Bonzi in three sets. Buse arrives in good form, having already won a title this season at the Hamburg ATP 500 event, where he defeated Tommy Paul in the final.
The timing could hardly be better for Fery, with the US Open at Flushing Meadows in New York just around the corner. He narrowly missed out on a seeding there and will open against Italian 13th seed Lorenzo Musetti. TennisDraw users picking Fery as a dark-horse finalist have been rewarded with a thrilling run through this week's draw.
