Alexander Zverev and Arthur Fery will meet in the Wimbledon semi-finals later this week.
Both players produced upsets in their quarter-finals, as Zverev won his first match in two years against Taylor Fritz while Fery shocked Flavio Cobolli.
Zverev and Fery have never met before, but it will be the German who arrives on court as the favourite to reach the final, given his Grand Slam experience.
Do you believe Arthur Fery can win Wimbledon?
During his post-match press conference, Fritz delivered his assessment of Zverev’s game, which might worry the British wild card.
Taylor Fritz says Alexander Zverev will be ‘incredibly tough to beat’ at Wimbledon
Fritz issued the following response when asked for his thoughts on Zverev and Fery’s upcoming Wimbledon semi-final.
“It’s tough to say. I didn’t get to watch the match today, obviously,” said Fritz.
“I don’t know. I do think Zverev is going to be incredibly tough to beat, just with how well he’s serving.
Alexander Zverev’s serving stats at Wimbledon
| Match | Aces | Double faults | 1st Serve % | Win % on 1st Serve | Win % on 2nd Serve |
| 1R vs Alexander Blockx (6-4, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6) | 21 | 7 | 83% | 78% | 82% |
| 2R vs Valentin Royer (6-1, 6-3, 7-6) | 14 | 2 | 71% | 85% | 65% |
| 3R vs Marcos Giron (6-2, 7-6, 6-4) | 17 | 3 | 73% | 77% | 61% |
| 4R vs Jiri Lehecka (6-4, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6) | 12 | 4 | 70% | 82% | 64% |
| QF vs Taylor Fritz (6-4, 6-4, 6-2) | 14 | 2 | 77% | 77% | 81% |
“That’s not something that I feel like really changes from day to day with him.
“I feel like you can kind of expect that he’s going to show up and serve at least 70% first serves, bombs.
“He’s playing with a lot of confidence.”
Fery will need to be wary of Zverev’s serve, which has caused problems for everyone he’s faced so far this tournament.
The German has averaged over 15 aces per match and hasn’t dipped below 70% first serves.
For the wild card to stand any chance of reaching his maiden major final, he must return with pinpoint precision and utilise his movement effectively to frustrate the world number three.
Fery might also consider using the crowd to his advantage, who will be desperate to see their man win on Centre Court.
Fritz commented on the possible impact of the crowd during his press conference.
“We’ll see if the crowd, playing obviously someone that he’s a big favorite over, we’ll see if that can cause any kind of an issue,” said Fritz.
“Yeah, he’s playing with a lot of confidence, and he’s playing really well.
“It’s going to be an interesting one.”
Fritz didn’t give an exact prediction, but he certainly rates Zverev’s level highly after playing and losing to him in the quarter-finals.
But the good news for Fery is that he hasn’t been the favourite all tournament, and yet he continues to win.
Who knows, Fery might have a few more tricks up his sleeve when he returns for his semi-final match…
Arthur Fery will become the British number one after Wimbledon
Regardless of what happens in the semi-finals, Fery will be recognised as the British number one when the next set of rankings are released.
The Briton is now up to 36th in the ‘Live ATP Rankings’, two places above his countryman, Cameron Norrie.
British ATP ‘Live’ Rankings
- 1. Arthur Fery – 36th (1,279 points)
- 2. Cameron Norrie – 38th (1,205 points)
- 3. Jan Choinski – 100th (658 points)
- 4. Toby Samuel – 126th (508 points)
- 5. Jack Draper – 143rd (410 points)
And he might not be done there…
If Fery wins his semi-final against Zverev, he will become the new world number 26, which would make him a provisional seed for the US Open later this year.
And if he can complete the fairy tale and take the title, he will jump up to 13th in the world rankings.
You may not have heard of the name Fery before Wimbledon began. But you certainly have now!
