Arthur Fery was unable to capture his maiden ATP Tour title on Saturday, falling to Peru's Ignacio Buse in the final of the Winston-Salem Open. Buse secured a 6-3, 6-2 victory, denying Fery the championship in North Carolina.
Despite the loss, the 24-year-old's impressive run in the tournament propels him to a career-high ranking of world No. 33. This significant jump in the rankings sees him overtake Cameron Norrie as the British No. 1. Notably, just eight weeks prior to this achievement, Fery was ranked outside the top 100 before reaching the semi-finals of Wimbledon.
Fery and Buse remained closely matched in the early stages of their final. However, Buse gained the advantage by breaking Fery's serve to go up 5-3, a lead he extended in the second set with a double break. Although Fery managed to pull one break back, Buse closed out the match by winning three consecutive games.
For Buse, the 22-year-old's victory marks his second career title and makes him the youngest-ever winner of the Winston-Salem event. He previously won an ATP 500 event in Hamburg in May.
With the Winston-Salem tournament concluded, Fery is scheduled to compete in the US Open, the final Grand Slam of the season, which begins on Sunday. He is slated to face Italian 13th seed Lorenzo Musetti in his first match at Flushing Meadows.
Fery is among nine British players participating in the main draws at the US Open. Joining him in the men's singles are Cameron Norrie and Jan Choinski, along with qualifiers Toby Samuel and Harry Wendelken, and lucky loser Jacob Fearnley. In the women's draw, Katie Boulter is set to compete, accompanied by qualifiers Fran Jones and Harriet Dart. However, Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu will miss the tournament due to injuries.