Sam Querrey has been 'blown away' by Arthur Fery's Wimbledon run but expects it to come to an abrupt end against semi-final opponent Alexander Zverev. The British wildcard Fery will face French Open champion Zverev on Centre Court on Friday for a place in the Wimbledon final.
Fery's Remarkable Journey
Fery, 23, did not qualify for his home Grand Slam but has taken full advantage of his wildcard during a life-changing week in SW19. The French-born Brit was ranked outside the top-100 before Wimbledon but will be at least No. 36 in the world come the end of the tournament and the new British number one. Fery overcame two five-set marathons in his previous two rounds before an emphatic straight-sets win over world number ten Flavio Cobolli.
Querrey's Prediction
British fans will hope Fery's dream Wimbledon run continues when he takes on world number three Zverev, but Querrey predicts a one-sided semi-final. Zverev was considered one of the best players to never win a Grand Slam before the German finally won a major last month at Roland Garros. The 29-year-old had previously struggled at Wimbledon but has dropped just two sets on his route to the semi-finals, thumping big-serving Taylor Fritz in the quarters.
'Prior to that match I would have bet every dollar I have that Flavio Cobolli would beat Arthur Fery in straight sets,' former Wimbledon semi-finalist and BBC pundit Querrey said on the Nothing Major podcast. 'That's how confident I was. But I'm blown away by Fery, he really stepped up with the whole crowd behind him.'
'Fery is less than 6ft tall but the grass helps him because it allows him to get more out of his serve. He's a really good mover, he's crafty, he anticipates well. I literally did not think he was even going to come close in this match and I was dead wrong. He's had a great draw in my opinion but you can only beat what's in front of you and he's stepped up time and time again.'
'It's a dream run. Zverev is playing great on the grass right now – he's playing Arthur Fery and he's going to beat him and be in the final. Zverev's not losing a set against Fery, there's no way he loses a set here. The dream run has been phenomenal, I've loved it, but he can't win a set I don't think.'
Cash's Warning to Zverev
Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash also expects Zverev to advance and says it would be a 'choke' should he fail to reach his first final at the All England Club. 'We saw against Cobolli that Fery was always in the rallies against serve,' Cash said. 'But with Zverev he could go two service games without touching the ball. That will unsettle his game and puts a lot of pressure on Fery's serve. It's a complete contrast to what we saw against Cobolli but all the pressure is on Zverev. This is his biggest opportunity to reach a Wimbledon final and if he doesn't take it then he'd be choking.'
Fery's Mindset
Fery, meanwhile, said he would follow the same process that has taken him to the semi-finals after an epic win over Cobolli. 'I felt emotions that I've never experienced before in my life in that last game,' he said. 'I don't know what I'll do over the next couple of days, I've never been in this position before! I guess we will figure it all out as we go. I'm just going to keep going. I've been doing a great job for the past 10 days, so I'm just going to do the same thing and see where that takes me.'
Defending champion Jannik Sinner faces seven-time winner Novak Djokovic in the other Wimbledon semi-final.
