British junior Arthur Fery on French Open, liking Nick Kyrgios & studying economics

Arthur Fery is looking to improve on his third-round runs at the 2020 Australian Open and Wimbledon last year

While Arthur Fery may have French parents, and speaks fluently in their native tongue, he is planning to give Britain something to celebrate at Roland Garros.

Fery, 18, is the highest-ranked British junior playing at the French Open in Paris and began his campaign on Sunday by beating home player Mehdi Sadaoui 6-4 6-3.

"My goal is to win here," the ninth seed told BBC Sport. "I don't feel there are too many players who are much better than me."

It is perhaps a bold assertion, but one which illustrates his growing confidence.

The London-born teenager has climbed to a junior ranking of 12th in the world and enjoyed a successful summer during which he won four British tournaments, organised by the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) to provide competitive action to players during the coronavirus pandemic.

That has won him many admirers within British tennis, including Davis Cup captain Leon Smith. He describes Fery as an "all-court player" who has a "really smart tennis IQ" and believes he has the talent to potentially forge a decent professional career.

Whatever happens, on his first appearance at Roland Garros and in the future, it promises to be an entertaining ride.

Fery, who comes across as assured but level-headed, says he admires the unorthodox style of Nick Kyrgios and talks about "not playing too traditionally" himself.

While he says the faster courts suit him more, he is hoping to transfer his summer form over to the clay.

The corner of south-west Paris housing Roland Garros is very familiar for Fery, who visited many times as a young fan.

He was raised in Wimbledon close to the All England Club, but has spent considerable time in France because of his family heritage.

His mother, Olivia, is a French former Fed Cup player, who used to work for the LTA as a business development manager, while father Loic is an asset manager who owns Ligue 1 football club Lorient.

Many of his summer holidays have been spent at the family's second home near La Rochelle on the west coast of France, and he has also spent time with other relatives near Nice - an area packed with courts and academies - to hone his tennis talent.

"I know a lot of people in France so it always feels great to come back," said Fery, who first picked up a racquet aged five.

"I'm playing for the British flag so tough to say I feel at home here, but I enjoy the French culture as well as the British culture.

"I'm proud to represent Britain and I'm playing as a Brit here."

Fery has won 27 of his 31 matches since the season restarted with a series of British events

The start of the junior tournaments, where Fery is joined by Felix Gill, Matilda Mutavdzic and Marni Banks in the draws, comes against the backdrop of British failure in the men's and women's singles at Roland Garros.

It was a chastening week for the British contingent, with all six players going out in the first round.

That led to one of them, Heather Watson, voicing concerns about the future of British tennis.

Watson, 28, criticised the LTA's strategy of backing a handful of talented youngsters rather than casting a wider net.

Fery has received support from the governing body this year through its men's and women's programme, which is helping eight young players aged between 16 and 21 try to move towards competing in Grand Slam events.

Practising with Grand Slam champions Andy Murray and Jamie Murray at the National Tennis Centre (NTC), as part of the scheme, has also aided his development.

Speaking before Watson's comments, Fery said: "Being on the programme has been really good. It has allowed me to have access to all the training facilities and helped fund my career.

"All the courts at the NTC are really good so it is a fantastic place to practise. And being around these great players all the time and, hitting with them a lot, definitely helps my progression."

Ambitious and confident, Fery says he feels ready to make the step up to the senior tour. However, he is taking a different path to hopefully achieving that: by moving to the United States to start university.

Fery planned to go to Stanford University in California this autumn, but has pushed that back to January in order to play at the French Open.

Using the US collegiate system as a springboard to the professional tours is a path taken by fellow Britons Cameron Norrie and Paul Jubb in recent years, as well as American players John Isner and Jennifer Brady, who are both ranked inside the world's top 25.

"I committed to going to Stanford last summer because I love the whole balance between the academics and the tennis," Fery said.

"I'm seeing a lot more players going to American universities and coming out and finding their way on to the pro tour, making the top 100 or the top 50. Cam, Isner, Steve Johnson, there are a lot of them now."

Deferring his move means the first few months of his university life are being spent learning online between practising and playing.

Typically, American university courses last for four years with the first two spent studying a range of general courses - such as maths, history and communications - before deciding which subject to focus on in the final two. At this stage, Fery is leaning towards majoring in economics.

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Juggling academic studies with his burgeoning tennis career is also a pragmatic move, perhaps partly encouraged by his mother's own rise in the WTA rankings being derailed by a wrist injury.

"I always wanted to go to America, my mum studied there after she got a big injury and she loved it. I've heard a lot of general positive feedback from everyone who has gone there," said Fery.

"The level is consistently high and it is becoming a more viable option to take if you're not quite ready to go professional at such an early age.

"Of course, it is in my head that it is a back-up plan if I get injured or don't find a way of making it.

"But tennis is my priority and I'm doing everything I can do to improve and get on to the pro tour."

Even if he did win at Roland Garros next week, and become Britain's first junior Grand Slam singles champion since 2011, it would not be a sure sign of future success as a professional.

But, after the gloom around the state of the British game this week, it would provide a glimmer of hope.