LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) - Reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals seemed so far-fetched to Britain's 114th-ranked Arthur Fery that he had been expecting to be sunning himself in Greece this week.
But his plans to swap his Wimbledon whites for swimming shorts hit a snag as he kept wading through the draw, match after match, to become the first wildcard in 25 years to reach the men's semi-finals at the grasscourt major.
Instead of working on his tan in Greece by now, he found himself working up a sweat in London's heatwave as he beat five rivals to reach the last four until Alexander Zverev finally ended his remarkable adventure in straight sets on Friday.
"Was meant to be going to Greece with some friends. We'll see if that's still in the cards," said the French-born player who has captivated the home nation over the past 11 days.
However, not everyone had faith in Fery.
"One of my friends went ahead of time, hoping I would lose," Fery said, laughing. "He came back two days later and was supporting me."
That wave of support, which included a video message from England's World Cup football team as well as Britain's Queen Camilla and Princess Kate watching him at Wimbledon, carried Fery into the unknown as the 23-year-old had won only two matches in total at the majors before this month.
With his ranking expected to shoot up to the mid-30s, Fery is looking forward to all the doors that will now open for him on the men's tour.
"It's going to change things, for sure. I'm going to be able to play tour events at least for a full year, hopefully for more," he said.
"It's going to be a challenge ... to see how I deal with that change and everything that that brings in terms of expectations from myself, from the public, from everyone.
"Already looking forward to that."
Once he has had a chance to recharge his batteries, Fery is looking forward to seeing how his newfound confidence plays out during the U.S. hardcourt swing, which will culminate with the new British number one making his debut at Flushing Meadows.
"I definitely need some time off, process everything that's happened these past two weeks ... and then just go again and do my best on every match that I play. I feel definitely comfortable playing slam main draws and more."
For now at least, the £900,000 ($1.21 million) Fery pocketed for reaching the last four will come in handy for an upgraded holiday.
($1 = 0.7465 pounds)
(Reporting by Pritha Sarkar; Editing by Alison Williams)
