For the thousands of people who gathered on Wimbledon’s iconic grass slope, Henman Hill - now rebranded Arthur’s Seat for the occasion - to support Arthur Fery, it wasn’t the fairytale ending they had hoped for. Fery was knocked out of the championships by German grand slam winner and No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev in a semi-final that many had dared dream might upend its David and Goliath narrative. An estimated 3,500 tennis fans crammed onto every patch of grass they could find to watch the match on a big screen, cheer on homegrown talent, and perfect the art of collective disappointment.
Before the end of the first set, the crowds had grown so thick that the hill - officially Aorangi Terrace, but also known as Murray Mound - was closed off, leaving a queue of frustrated Fery fans snaking around the grounds. One exasperated security guard asked, “Where are all these people coming from?” as he tried to move spectators blocking pathways with growing desperation. A fan exclaimed: “It’s crazy trying to get a spot on the hill!”
Deborah Sampson had come from Essex to show support for Fery in person. “He’s another up-and-coming Great Britain star for us, after [Andy] Murray,” she said. “I think he deserved to win, but it is disappointing.” She consoled herself that at 23, “he’s got a long way to go. He’ll be back next year.” Claire Churchill, from Leatherhead, said that despite the result, the atmosphere on the hill was “brilliant.” “Everybody’s been clapping and getting involved,” she said, adding she was heartened to see the crowd give him a standing ovation “to show respect.” “Being British, it’s very much like, ‘Oh that’s a shame’, but he’s the underdog, so he’s done brilliantly.”
Henry Rosenstock, from Germany, was supporting Zverev, but admitted: “I’ve followed [Fery’s] games and I know what the fuss is about - and yeah, it’s quite huge, I mean, he’s a wildcard, so it’s even more special.” Fery fans started gathering on the hill from the moment Wimbledon’s gates opened at 10am, some with laptops perched on their legs or picking up harried phone calls as they juggled work commitments with last-minute leave to catch Britain’s great tennis hope.
As the match got under way, the hill’s customary polite clapping exploded into loud cheers. In violation of championship rules prohibiting large flags, one fan unfurled an England flag with “King Arthur” scrawled on top. George Pitchford, from Clapham, managed to squeeze onto the hill by arriving an hour early. It was his sixth Wimbledon, and he said: “It’s crazy, I’ve never seen it this busy.” A somewhat subdued atmosphere descended as Fery struggled against Zverev in the first two sets. “The game’s not going maybe as you would like it, but it’s decent,” Pitchford said, noting that Fery looked “washed out a bit.” He added: “I think everyone’s just so happy to see him. Such a good story, it might end now but he’s been great.”
Johnny Aitkens, from Wandsworth, arrived two hours before the game to secure a spot. He observed that the crowd felt “quite tense,” and echoed a sentiment voiced by many: Fery’s progress had “kind of crept up on me … and suddenly I was like, ‘wow’.” Mindy Valone, from New York, and her friend Rebecca Hickim, from north London, had come to Wimbledon purposely to soak up the hill atmosphere. “It’s exhilarating, it’s exciting,” said Valone. Hickim added that the hill was “a lot busier” than her previous visits, with “more excitement and interest.” Sebastian Hazzan, from London, had come hoping to find a new tennis star to follow. “I miss Andy Murray, really,” he said, adding: “But he could be [the next one] … I love an underdog, and he’s an inspiration.” Hazzan and his friend Eve Eyimah were teetering with “one toe on the grass” on the edge of the hill in a desperate bid to evade security guards. “They’re very strict,” Hazzan said.