By Shrivathsa Sridhar
LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) – Alexander Zverev ended the remarkable Wimbledon run of Briton Arthur Fery with a 7-6(0) 6-2 6-4 victory on Friday to reach the final, where he will have an opportunity to win back-to-back Grand Slam trophies after his French Open success.
Fresh off his Roland Garros triumph that handed him a long-awaited breakthrough after years of heartbreak, the German made his fifth major title clash and will battle reigning Wimbledon champion Jannik Sinner or seven-times winner Novak Djokovic.
“Whether it’s the champion or somebody who’s won here 48 times, it’s not going to be easy, no matter who it’s against,” Zverev joked about potentially facing Djokovic, who will be eyeing a record 25th Grand Slam crown.
“But I have to trust myself and I have to believe that I can win and that’s what I’m going to do.”
On a warm afternoon punctuated by gusts of wind, Zverev took time to find his stride as he traded breaks early with Fery, but it was all smooth sailing in the tiebreak where the 29-year-old did not drop a point to win the first set.
“It was amazing … Arthur, what an unbelievable player,” Zverev said.
“He’s going to be a senior citizen on our tour, because I think he’s going to play for 15-plus years, and is going to have great results. This is just the beginning of his career and I really think he’s going to do amazing things.”
FERY FALTERS IN BID TO EMULATE IVANISEVIC
Fery, bidding to become the second man to make a major final as a wildcard after Goran Ivanisevic at Wimbledon in 2001, kept pushing in the next set, but he quickly found himself down 1-4 as his more experienced opponent dialled up the intensity.
The vociferous Centre Court crowd rallied behind Fery after the 23-year-old appeared to let his frustrations boil over, but they were soon silenced when Zverev unshackled his fiery serve and forehand to tighten his grip on the match.
“I know that 99.99% of the stadium wanted Arthur to win, but it was still such an incredible atmosphere,” Zverev added.
“It was such a fair crowd. I enjoyed every second of it. A lot of stadiums and crowds in the world can take the example of this crowd. It’s one of the best to play tennis in front of.”
Up two sets to love, Zverev continued to dominate Fery and breezed through in clinical fashion to ensure he became only the 13th man in the professional era since 1968 to reach all four Grand Slam finals.
“This Grand Slam’s always been the one I struggle with the most and now all of a sudden, I’m in the final of Wimbledon, so I’m incredibly happy and incredibly proud,” Zverev said.
“But we’ve got one more match to go on Sunday, and that’s where the focus will be.”
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in London; Editing by Alison Williams)
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