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With Britain’s Arthur Ferry now just two wins away from achieving what seemed mission impossible before the start of Wimbledon, the comparison is only fair.
What started as a whisper after the world No. 114’s fourth-round victory over Grigor Dimitrov has become the talk of the town among pundits and fans alike.
Can Ferri emulate Emma Radukanu and win her first Grand Slam title seemingly out of nowhere?
Little was known about Radukanu when he became the first qualifier to win a major at the US Open in 2021.
Emma Raducanu won the US Open in 2021 after qualifying
The same could be said of Ferry after stunning French Open finalist Flavio Cobolli booked his first Grand Slam semi-final berth.
Ahead of the tournament, Ferry was just part of a long list of British names competing in grass-court tournaments. There was no expectation and certainly no suggestion that the 23-year-old wild card could win a few matches at Wimbledon, let alone reach the last four.
At the start of the Championships, the focus was on the doom and gloom of British tennis. After Radukanu withdrew on the eve of the major with injury, 10 British players suffered defeats on day one, while Jack Draper also pulled out of his mouth-watering opening round tie against Taylor Fritz with repeated hand injuries.
British tennis was in despair and there seemed to be no light at the end of the tunnel.
That was before Ferry and his high-risk, high-reward style hit the court.
Arthur Ferry has stunned fans with his style of play
Controversy and nosebleeds: Ferry’s path to the semi-finals
Ferry also sparked controversy in his run to the semi-finals at Wimbledon. In his first-round four-set win over Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur, there were allegations of dishonesty by his opponent for a late call.
Jumhur felt that a Ferri serve had caught the tape causing him to complain to the official for Ferri being “honest”.
He said: “I thought he was stopping, nobody called. I didn’t ask him to replay, but to be honest, because I would. Obviously we’re not all the same.”
Arthur Ferry suffered a nosebleed against Jiju Burgess
In his third-round win over Eastbourne champion Jiju Burgess, Ferry required three medical timeouts to treat a nosebleed, which has affected him throughout his career.
A final nosebleed came when he could have stayed in the game at 5-4 in the deciding set.
To which Ferry said after his victory: “It’s a problem I’m going to solve. It’s happened before but it’s not common.
“It happened today when I didn’t want to stop, when the momentum was with me.
“I know it’s frustrating for the opponent. It gives me some extra time to rest sometimes.”
According to tournament rules, a player who bleeds must receive treatment before continuing play, but must not leave the court.
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Alison Taylor, Arthur Ferry’s former trainer, has revealed what it was like to train the 23-year-old in his younger days and what first stood out to her about him.
Ferri didn’t have a nosebleed during his center court bow against Dimitrov on Monday night, or a straight-sets victory over Cobelli in just over two hours to book a place in the semi-finals and a showdown with French Open winner Alexander Zverev.
The wild card, who started the tournament at world No. 114, climbed into the top 40 by reaching the last four.
If he gets past Zverev, he could break into the top 30 and move even higher if he beats Novak Djokovic or Janic Ciner in Sunday’s showpiece.
It’s barely believable. But that was the case when Radukanu produced his own stunning triumph at Flushing Meadows just five years ago, and why couldn’t Ferry create similar magic again for British tennis?
By reaching the semi-finals, he became only the fifth British man to reach the last four at Wimbledon, joining Andy Murray, Tim Henman, Roger Taylor and Cameron Norrie in illustrious company.
Andy Murray is the last British man to win Wimbledon
‘Radukanu didn’t let the opportunity pass him by’
Ferry’s strength is that he doesn’t know when he’s beaten. Against Bergs in the third round and Dimitrov in the fourth round, he fought back from losing positions to win in five sets.
He showed that he can raise his level even in the quarter-finals by defeating ninth seed Koboli, his first seed so far in the tournament.
Radukanu, who was ranked 150 in the world five years ago when he won in New York, did not see a seed during his incredible run. But the Briton didn’t drop a set as, at just 18, she became the youngest major champion since Maria Sharapova at the 2004 Wimbledon Championships.
Emma Radukanu did not drop a set on her way to the title in 2021
His run at the US Open came after he showed glimpses of his skills during his breakout run to the fourth round at Wimbledon earlier in the summer.
“My memory of it was that it was impressive how he didn’t let this opportunity get to him,” Ferry said of Radukanu’s 2021 Wimbledon campaign.
“He will go on match after match, playing well, beating top players. It’s very difficult to do that when you’re not used to being on stage, on such a big stage.
“He did it great when he won the US Open. I’m trying to do that too. Just take it match by match, play my game.”
FERRY: I watched the highlights of Ivanisevic’s 2001 success
While it’s natural to draw comparisons to Radukanu’s breakout success five years ago, much has also been made of Goran Ivanisevic’s eventual wild card win at Wimbledon in 2001.
Ivanisevic defeated a determined Brit Tim Henman in the semifinals in a thrilling five-set match that lasted three days due to rain delays, days before the Center Court roof.
Ferry was asked about Ivanisevic’s achievements and whether he was aware of his incredible run nearly 25 years ago.
“I already knew he was the only wildcard to win a Grand Slam. So it’s definitely an incredible story,” said Ferry after his win over Cobley.
“I’ve seen the highlights of the final before. I’m not going to speculate too much or think ahead about what it might be. I’ll just keep thinking about Friday’s match, then we’ll see how it goes.”
Ferry has already given British tennis fans a much-needed boost when all hope seems lost. Now can he deliver his own rainbow moment with one of the biggest sports stories of the year?
