THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 4, 2026

Arthur Fery

Press Conference

A. FERY/Z. Bergs

2-6, 7-5, 2-6, 7-6, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Arthur, through to the second week of Wimbledon. How does that feel?

ARTHUR FERY: Yeah, incredible. I mean, it's going to take definitely a while to fully process that one. But yeah, obviously incredibly happy and pleased to be through to the second week, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Never won a five-set match before. You came back from 4-1 down in both the fourth and fifth. What were you thinking at those moments? Did you feel you were always still in it?

ARTHUR FERY: Yeah, I was just trying to back my fighting spirit and just, yeah, use that to my advantage and just try and base my whole game around that. Just keep going.

I knew that he maybe could get a little shaky when he was getting close to winning the match, as well. I don't think he's made the fourth round of a slam either.

Yeah, just trying to keep fighting, keep calm, and just play.

Q. You've spoken about how much you enjoyed being on Court 18. Are you going to put another request in?

ARTHUR FERY: I actually didn't put any request in myself. Yeah, my team spoke to the club. Obviously the club knew that I won my second round on 18. I had a great experience there. But, yeah, I wasn't involved in any of that.

Yeah, I was really pleased to play on 18 again. Had great vibes on there on Thursday. I think it fit with the club's schedule.

Q. Would you like to play there again or...

ARTHUR FERY: No, I think it's time to move on. I'll keep those great memories on 18 from today and Thursday for the rest of my life. Yeah, I'm sure I'll play again on there at some point.

Yeah, we'll see what Monday holds for me.

Q. 40-15, 4-5, what's going through your mind? Are you thinking, I can't believe it's happening?

ARTHUR FERY: I can't do much about it. It happened a few times in the match today, and the other day as well. Can't do much about it. There's times where it breaks my momentum, as well. Yeah, there's times where, I mean, I can obviously understand it's frustrating for the opponent as well to constantly have to wait.

Yeah, I can't do much about it, at least when I'm on the court today. Personally, I was just accepting it and trying to move forward the best I could after.

Q. What do you think is different about your preparation this year at Wimbledon compared to previous years? What has clicked this year?

ARTHUR FERY: Well, I think the obvious one is that I've played a lot of grass court matches leading up to Wimbledon this year. That definitely helps with confidence, with match fitness, with everything. I've also been playing a lot this year, got a lot of wins under the belt. That really helps.

I feel, yeah, confident here even before my first round. My ranking was higher, so that helped with me feeling in my place.

Q. Into your next round, the biggest match of your career, how are you going to strategize or any techniques to manage a bigger crowd, expectations?

ARTHUR FERY: Yeah, I'm not really the one to really get the... Obviously, it's unbelievable to have support. It definitely helps me. Clearly at the end of the fifth, the crowd played a huge part in that. I was really, really grateful to have them behind me.

I'm not the kind of player to really, yeah, interact with the crowd too much during the match. I try to stay collected inside, which sometimes is tricky enough as it is. If I start giving too much energy out, then it's going to affect my tennis. Yeah, I just try to stay calm.

Playing on a bigger court, obviously it's going to be, not a new experience, but a great experience that I'm looking forward to. There's obviously pressure associated to it. But I've now already played a few matches in front of big crowds.

I feel, yeah, I feel ready for it.

Q. I noticed there was a chant going around in the crowd, Here comes the ferry, then people made a ferry sound. Is that something new?

ARTHUR FERY: That particular chant?

Q. Yes. Have you heard it before?

ARTHUR FERY: I haven't heard it before. I haven't heard it before. It's original (smiling).

Did it help me? I mean, I don't think it helped me more than the general encouragements and support.

But no, it's good to have a bit of banter in the crowd. Yeah, lines up the mood. It's good to see people having fun watching tennis. Coming to Wimbledon, it's great, yeah.

Q. In between matches when you're not training or before a big game, do you have any kind of pregame rituals or anything you like to do to help you relax?

ARTHUR FERY: No. No weird rituals, no. I'm just trying to recover as best I can, sleep. Sleep is, yeah, so important for me. It's obviously tough in these moments when I'm experiencing new -- having new experiences, getting this far in a slam.

No, I just think similar things to what every tennis player does. Regripping the racquets, listening to music.

Q. Favorite artist that helps you?

ARTHUR FERY: I mean, yeah, I like house music a lot. I listen to a lot of house music.

Q. You have Grigor Dimitrov or Matteo Berrettini next. They're playing now. Do you know those guys? Have you spoken to them before? Have you ever practiced with them? What do you think of the challenge?

ARTHUR FERY: Yeah, I've practiced with both of them. I don't know either of them well. Obviously two very established players. They've had great careers. So it's going to be, yeah, a great challenge for me to play one of those guys.

I'm looking forward to it. I feel confident in myself. I feel confident in the fact that I can rival-ize with them and put a good performance in.

Q. It was the longest match of your professional career. Are you proud of the way you coped with that? How do you feel now?

ARTHUR FERY: A lot of first times today for me. Yeah, just so proud of how I handled everything. First five-setter, longest match that I've ever played, first time breaking into the top 100, first second week in a slam, all at home, five minutes from where I grew up. It's a great story for me.

Physically, yeah, I felt a bit tired. My legs were really feeling it in the end of the second and into the third. Then I guess with the adrenaline, I kept going. At the end I was buzzing. I was still running for balls.

Yeah, I'm sure it will hit me at some point, but right now I feel great.

Q. This result will get you into the top 100, probably into the US Open main draw. What do those achievements mean for you and for your career?

ARTHUR FERY: Yeah, it's a really special moment. I can't really fully process it yet. When I'm playing this well and having these kind of results, it was only a matter of time till I broke the top 100.

It's still a significant milestone. As I said, yeah, doing it here is incredibly special for me. It's my home tournament. It's where I grew up. So yeah, it's very special.