For a few fleeting moments inside the vast John Cain Arena, it seemed like Arthur Fery had missed his opportunity. The 23-year-old’s attempts to serve out an excellent opening set at 5-4 up against the 20th seed at the Australian Open, Flavio Cobolli, had ended painfully. He quickly found himself serving, down 6-5, against one of the top players in the world, with his back to the wall.
These circumstances often do not favour the more inexperienced, lower-ranked players, but in one of the biggest matches of his career Fery created his own luck as he rose to the occasion and delivered the first great upset in Melbourne, dismantling Cobolli 7-6 (1), 6-4, 6-1 to reach the second round for the first time.
