Arthur Fery reveals charming comment he made to Queen Camilla at Wimbledon | Tennis | Sport

And Fery, who will now skyrocket to No. 36 in the world and become the new British No. 1 next week, has now revealed that he had an endearing conversation with the Queen, telling her that his birthday is on Sunday – the day of the men’s singles final.

The British wildcard needed just two hours and 14 minutes to beat the ninth seed 6-4 7-6(4) 6-0 in his second-ever match on Centre Court. And he’s now hoping that he can go all the way and celebrate his 24th birthday by playing the championship match – something he told the Queen.

Reflecting on their first chance meeting, Fery, 23, explained: “Yeah, we were getting ready to come on and she came to say hello, she introduced herself to both me and Flavio.

“It’s obviously an honour to play in front of her. Great to meet her. She had some really kind words to me at the end, as well. So yeah, playing in front of tennis legends and now the queen, so it’s special, yeah.”

They met again at the conclusion of the match, and the new Wimbledon semi-finalist added: “Yeah, the Queen, she was waiting for me at the end of the match. She congratulated me.

“I told her how much of an honour it was for me to play in front of her. She just said, ‘Congratulations, keep going’. I told her it was my birthday on Sunday, so it would be great to play the Wimbledon final on my birthday.”

The world No. 114 played his best match of the tournament in front of the Queen, who sat in the Royal Box alongside All England Club chair Deborah Jevans. It’s the first time he’s won in straight sets this fortnight.

In his last two matches, Fery came back from losing positions to clinch victory in a fifth-set tiebreak – something that gave him confidence against world No. 10 Cobolli. “It was hotter today, and I felt it definitely. It was good I only played two hours and a bit, which was nice for the recovery,” he said.

“Yeah, I feel tired. I feel mentally tired, physically. That’s been the case for the past five days. That’s also something that’s really grown my confidence. I now feel like I can play even when I’m tired, even when I’m stressed. In any conditions, I feel confident in my game and I know that I can just go out there and compete.”