Arthur Fery Reveals What Princess Kate Told Him Before Making Amazing Offer to Coach the Wales Children

Arthur Fery says he has offered to coach the Prince and Princess of Wales's children at tennis after Princess Kate handed him a surprise 24th-birthday card at Wimbledon.

The British world No 114, who reached the semi-finals at the All England Club, met the Princess as she arrived with Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte ahead of the men's final on Sunday.

According to Fery, the Princess handed him a birthday card and told him: 'This is for you! Happy birthday.'

It was a small moment by royal standards, but for a player who had spent the previous 48 hours processing a painful semi-final loss, it clearly landed. He called the gesture 'heartwarming'.

Run From Wildcard To Centre Court Attention

Fery has been one of the unexpected stories of this year's Championships. Entering as a wildcard ranked outside the world's top 100, he surged through the draw into the last four, giving British fans a home contender in a year without Jack Draper or Emma Raducanu.

His run ended on Friday with defeat to No 2 seed Alexander Zverev, who went on to face Jannik Sinner in Sunday's final.

Kate had already taken an interest in his run, attending his second-round match earlier in the fortnight. 'I mean the princess came to my match in the second round, it was great to have her there and we spoke a little about that,' Fery told reporters on Sunday.

'It was good to see her here and good to meet her finally. She wished me good luck for the rest of the year and congratulated me for these two weeks.'

The Offer To Coach Prince George, Charlotte And Louis

Fery did not leave the exchange at a simple thank you. He revealed that during their conversation, he raised the Wales children's growing interest in the sport.

'I know the whole family are all tennis fans, so I told her if her kids ever wanted to hit, I'm free,' he said, recalling that he had asked Kate: 'I hear your children play tennis?' before offering to 'hit some balls' with them.

Asked whether he expects the royal household to follow up, Fery played it down. 'It would be good to see them again,' he said. 'Let's see, I don't know. Let's see if I get the call up.'

There has been no public response from Kensington Palace, and the arrangement cannot be independently verified beyond Fery's account.

Fortnight Windfall And Royal Encounter

Fery seems to be taking it all with a mixture of disbelief and quiet ambition. After earning a reported £900,000 for his Wimbledon performance, being handed a birthday card by the Princess of Wales and potentially lining up as a hitting partner for her children is not the usual post-tournament comedown.

He admitted the royal encounter helped soften the blow of losing to Zverev, who had been heavily favoured going into their semi-final despite Fery's run already capturing the crowd.

On Sunday, he said he planned to watch the men's final between Sinner and Zverev on television rather than in the stands, a reminder that, despite his breakthrough, he is still closer to the journeyman grind than the permanent royal box.