Arthur Fery has reached his first ATP Tour final at the Winston-Salem Open after his semi-final opponent, James Duckworth, retired due to injury. Fery was leading 6-4, 2-1 when Duckworth, who had taken a medical timeout after the first set, decided he could not continue, resulting in a retirement after 59 minutes of play.

This victory marks a significant milestone for Fery, who has recently surged up the rankings following an impressive run to the Wimbledon semi-finals. He will now face Ignacio Buse in the final, who secured his place by defeating Benjamin Bonzi in three sets. Buse previously beat Tommy Paul at the ATP 500 tournament in Hamburg earlier this year, making this his second ATP Tour final.

Fery expressed his feelings post-match: “I am really happy to be in the final. Not the way I wanted it to end at all. I hope James will get well soon and rest up for next week. But I am very happy to be through.”

At 24 years old, Fery becomes the first Brit to reach the final at this North Carolina tournament, an ATP 250 event. His advancement to the final will elevate him to a new career high of 33rd in the world rankings. Just eight weeks ago, he was outside the top 100, but now he stands as the British No 1, surpassing Cameron Norrie due to his remarkable performance in Winston-Salem.

Fery narrowly missed out on a seeding for the upcoming US Open and will face 13th seed Lorenzo Musetti, who reached the quarter-finals in New York last year, in the first round.