Arthur Fery’s return to competition on home soil for the first time since his glorious summer at Wimbledon took place on a different surface, in a different format and on the opposite side of London. The emotions it generated were all the same as the British No 1 led his team to a 2-0 lead over Ecuador by defeating Álvaro Guillén Meza 7-5, 6-0 in Great Britain’s Davis Cup qualifier tie in the Copper Box Arena.
The victory for Fery, a Wimbledon semi-finalist, was preceded by a solid debut for the British No 5, Toby Samuel, a late injury replacement for Cameron Norrie. Samuel opened the tie by overcoming a nervous start to set the tone with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Ecuador’s No 1, Andrés Andrade.
A successful opening day means Britain stands one win away from the Davis Cup Final 8, the decisive knockout stage of the competition, which takes place in Bologna between 18 and 23 November.
“You get goosebumps walking out,” said Fery. “I don’t know how many people that was, but it made a lot of noise. It was great playing here in London. A lot of support from everyone.
“It’s always different playing Davis Cup. You’re playing for a whole nation. There’s more responsibility on your shoulders. You know that it’s going to impact the team result as well, how you play. It’s a weight I can carry on my shoulders and I felt confident. It was never too much of a burden.”
Great Britain will now call on its impressive doubles team, the world No 1, Henry Patten, and last week’s US Open champion, Neal Skupski, to seal the tie in the first of three potential matches on Sunday.
As a result of Norrie’s late withdrawal, a packed and forceful British crowd witnessed a new Great Britain singles lineup, with Fery’s singles victory in Poland last September the only Davis Cup match he or Samuel had played. Despite their inexperience, the home team, in favourable conditions, was heavily favoured to defeat an Ecuador team without a player inside the top 200.
Still, no tennis competition springs surprises like the Davis Cup and Ecuador had already showed it should not be taken lightly. They earned their place at this stage with a 3-1 win against Australia in Quito on clay in February. An away tie in east London on indoor hard courts, however, is a different challenge.
Last February, Samuel was ranked outside the top 1,600 and was competing on the lowest rung of the World Tennis (formerly ITF) Tour as recently as November. He has been one of the fastest-rising players since then, winning nine titles in the past year at all levels, including five ATP Challenger titles.
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As a result of qualifying and winning a round at the US Open, Samuel broke into the top 100 for the first time this week, reaching a career-high ranking of No 95 and deservedly earning his first Davis Cup call-up. Things did not start ideally for him as he looked understandably nervous and tense, losing the first four games. As he relaxed, Samuel began to dominate the underpowered Andrade with his big serve and forehand, winning 10 of the final 11 games from 4-4 in set two.
Ranked No 293, Álvaro Guillén Meza was as high as 175 last year, but has rarely played on hard courts since his professional debut in 2018, let alone won matches on the surface, compiling a 1-9 pro record. The 23-year-old hung tough in the first set, remaining solid against an unusually erratic and frustrated Fery who struggled with his forehand.
At 5-5, 0-30, Fery looked tight, but grinding through a long point with his defence allowed him to settle down. He recovered to hold serve and began to overpower Guillén Meza from the baseline, immediately breaking serve to take the set.
Fery closed out his first Davis Cup win with the final eight games to extend his team’s lead to 2-0 after the first day.
