Fearnley admits to exceeding wildest expectations in Nottingham

By James Reid

Jacob Fearnley admitted he has exceeded even his wildest expectations by clinching the men’s singles title at the LTA’s Rothesay Open in Nottingham.

The 22-year-old from Edinburgh fought his way from the first round of qualifying to reach the final, where he beat compatriot Charles Broom 4-6 6-4 6-3 on Sunday.

Victory saw Fearnley win his first ATP Challenger Tour title at just the second attempt as he makes a strong return to British soil after impressing in the US college system.

And Fearnley revealed he would not have believed anyone had they told him he would be champion come the end of the week.

“It has been an unexpected week,” he said. “If you told me at the start of the week I was going to be the champion I would have laughed.

“I am just super happy and I can’t believe it.

“Hopefully I can use this momentum for the upcoming matches. Hopefully with Wimbledon coming up I will get some opportunities, that would be great to keep this momentum going.

“It’s a Challenger event, it’s only the second one I have played so hopefully I can play a lot more of these events in the future.”

Fearnley picked up a number of notable victories en route to the final, getting past world No.160 Mattia Bellucci 6-3 6-1 in the semi-final, having already defeated world No.96 Shang Juncheng 7-5 7-5 in the quarters.

The 22-year-old was made to work hard for his victory over Broom, with his opponent taking the first set and putting on real pressure with his serve.

But Fearnley was able to hold his own in the second and level the scores before pushing on for victory.

“It was a great match,” he added. “Charles has been playing unbelievable all week and I knew he was going to play well today and he did.

“He was all over me to be honest and I managed to come out four games in a row on my serve in the second set and then managed to build some momentum on my return games because he was serving so well.

“It was a great match and I am super happy to have come through it.”

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