Just 20 minutes into one of the most significant occasions of his short professional tennis career, Jacob Fearnley was offered an indication of the lofty level required to defeat the best players in the world.
With the score at 2-3, 0-15 early in his first appearance in the third round of a grand slam, the 23-year-old had swept to the net behind an ultra-aggressive combination of groundstrokes, a strong move that would have comfortably earned him the point against his previous opponents.
This time, he watched on as Alexander Zverev chased down the ball and pounded a backhand passing shot straight down the line for a clean winner. Two points later, he was down a break.
After two intense hours on Margaret Court Arena, Fearnley departed his first overseas grand slam tournament with many valuable lessons from the second seed on Friday afternoon. Across three competitive sets, Zverev demonstrated his far greater consistency, focus and experience as he returned to the fourth round of the Australian Open.
Fearnley described his experience against one of the best players in the world and his progress through the draw as a massive confidence boost for his career. “I learned a lot about my game, about what I need to do better. I’ve learned a lot. To have these kind of matches seven months, eight months into my career is extremely valuable,” he said.
In the few months since Fearnley began to focus on becoming a professional after college, he has already experienced milestones that some spend an entire career working towards. He has won numerous ATP Challenger events, broken into the top 100 and faced Novak Djokovic on Centre Court at Wimbledon.
This week, his first experience as a direct entrant into a grand slam yielded a first-round match against Nick Kyrgios, followed by victory over Arthur Cazaux, leading to this third-round meeting with Zverev. Fearnley is armed with a precise first serve and a potent, whippy forehand that he constantly searches for to impose himself on opponents. At 1.83m (6ft) and relatively slight in build, he also has to find other ways to hurt the many bigger and stronger opponents he will encounter on the tour. Fearnley pairs his offensive game style with a keenness to approach the net and solid athleticism.
“I think he’s an incredible player,” said Zverev. “He went through all the stages; he went to college, he went through Futures and Challengers. Now he’s on the big tour, playing in the third round of a grand slam. I have massive respect for him.”
Fearnley unfurled many layers of his well-rounded game, eviscerating forehands, sometimes closing down the net and holding his own in the physical exchanges. But while the 23-year-old dictated the terms of most exchanges, his inexperience was also reflected in the occasional unfocused service game he produced in each set.
Zverev, meanwhile, has been here many times before, now securing 468 tour-level wins compared to Fearnley’s count of four. The man from Dalkeith maintained a steady, consistent level until the end. “I think for me that will come with experience, just knowing when to maybe go for it and maybe when just to play solid,” said Fearnley.
This has been an extremely impressive week for Fearnley, who held his nerve in total chaos to close out Kyrgios and beat France’s Cazaux in another rowdy atmosphere. Fearnley will rise to a career-high ranking around No 77 after this tournament and he will next head to Japan, where he will likely make his Davis Cup debut for Great Britain.
As his old friend Jack Draper has repeatedly noted throughout this week, this is only the beginning. The more experience Fearnley gains, the greater understanding he will have of what he needs to do to continue his rise up the rankings and perhaps, one day, be among the best players in the world himself.
“I think all I can do is be the best I can be,” said Fearnley.
“If I keep working hard and keep doing the right things, then good things will happen. Then hopefully the sky is the limit.”
