Susanna Reid issued an on-air apology to British tennis wildcard Arthur Fery during Tuesday's episode of Good Morning Britain, following his historic Wimbledon quarter-final victory.
Historic Wimbledon Win
The 55-year-old presenter, co-hosting with Ed Balls, covered Arthur Fery's remarkable achievement: the 23-year-old became the first British wildcard to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals after a five-set battle against Grigor Dimitrov. Ranvir Singh broke the news on the show, detailing Fery's 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 6-7 victory on Centre Court.
Susanna and Ed discussed the win with regular contributors Kwasi Kwarteng and the Mirror's Kevin Maguire before Susanna made her apology.
Susanna's Apology
Susanna said: "Let's celebrate an incredible sporting achievement. British wildcard Arthur Fery emerging victorious following an enthralling five-set thriller yesterday with Grigor Dimitrov to make it to the Wimbledon quarter finals. He is 23 years old and is now carrying the British hopes in the tournament." She added: "Congratulations Arthur Fery. And he's playing in pretty hot, humid conditions. And I had never heard of him, sorry Arthur!"
Kevin Maguire responded: "I know, because he's so low ranked. This is the fantastic sporting story. It's somebody [with] little chance achieving incredible success, while [Donald] Trump and the [World Cup] red card is the very worst of sport."
Praise from Tim Henman
Susanna revealed that former British tennis ace Tim Henman praised Fery's performance, saying: "An incredible performance. He's shaking his head in disbelief about what just happened."
Fery's Reaction
After his win, Arthur Fery said: "I've no words right now. It's incredibly tough to put words to what I've just felt on a tennis court in front of all you guys. The support was phenomenal." He added: "First time on this court, five sets against an absolute legend of the game. I grew up five minutes from here, I grew up coming to watch matches on this court." Addressing Roger Federer, who watched from the Royal Box, Fery said: "We've got probably the greatest of all time watching from the front row of the Royal Box. Now playing here in front of all you guys and winning, it's unbelievable."
Grand Slam History
This match marked the first time in Grand Slam history that two wild card entrants faced each other at such an advanced stage of a competition. Dimitrov, ranked 146th after an injury at last year's Wimbledon, fell to Fery in the epic encounter.
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 6am.
