(VIDEO) Francisco Cerundolo receives a painful blow to the throat by Arthur Fery enroute to win at Queen's

Francisco Cerundolo was victorious at Queen's Club Championships over Great Britain's last hope Arthur Fery. The road to victory was a painful one, having the tennis ball driven straight into his throat from point-blank range.

It was a hugely important match in the ATP 500 tournament for both players. A spot in the semi-final was up for grabs with a number of points up for grabs. With a wide open draw, anyone could take this title home at Queen's.

Cerundolo went into this tie as the favourite and backed up that status in a very tight match, winning 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-4 against the British wildcard. All hopes of another British player competing in the final similar to the women's event where Emma Raducanu had a crack at glory were extinguished for at least another year.

The main talking point of the match was a huge scare for the Argentine. With both players aggressive on court, they both opted to trudge towards the net. Cerundolo just managed to get one of Fery's shots back, setting the wildcard up for a shot either side of him for a free point.

Instead, he blasted it accidentally straight at him, hitting Cerundolo right in the throat with power and precision from right up close. He was the first one to see if he was ok before the Umpire came down from his chair. Cerundolo was in a lot of pain, lying on the floor clutching his neck.

In the next point, he almost had a shot at revenge. Fery charged towards the net again to retrieve a drop shot as Cerundolo lined up for a big forehand. Knowing what was coming, Fery ducked and held his racket up as he hit a forehand cross court, still missing. Cerundolo could afford a smile at this, knowing he will be on top at the end of proceedings.

After breaking in the second game, the signs were ominous. Over 100 positions split the pair in the rankings heading into this tournament and Cerundolo was looking to lay down an early marker. However, Fery was not going to let him dominate. He broke straight back in a period where he went from 2-0 down to 5-3 ahead after a hold to love. His efforts in serving out the first set were thwarted as Cerundolo went on to win a comfortable tiebreak.

He backed this up by again going 2-0 to the good. From 3-1 up, he did not win another game in the second set. Fery ticked off five games on the spin which included again surviving break points when looking to get the set under his belt.

It went to a third and deciding set, in which Fery seized the initiative early on. Unfortunately, Cerundolo showed his class and quickly got the match back on serve. 5-4 up, he broke right at the end with a first match point to end Fery's dreams of an unlikely title run on home soil.

He is up first in the semi-finals against Brandon Nakashima. Cerundolo is a very solid player on grass having won the Eastbourne Open back in 2023. However, it will be a huge test against the American who just knocked out the number one seed Alex de Minaur in straight sets.

The title favourite, Tommy Paul, will then take on Ugo Humbert. The 2024 champion did not play here last year due to injury, meaning that he is still on a very commendable unbeaten streak. He will very much want to add another two wins to that run and seal another title in London. Humbert will not be a walkover. He also has had success at ATP 500 level on grass, winning the 2021 Halle Open. It is set to be a hugely intriguing lineup with the champion set to be crowned very soon.