LONDON, July 2 (Reuters) – Kate, Britain’s Princess of Wales, mingled with the crowds at Wimbledon on Thursday and lent her support to the British hopefuls playing in the warm London sunshine.
Dressed in a blue trouser suit, the 44-year-old wife of heir to the throne Prince William watched Arthur Fery, one of the last Britons remaining in the draw, in his early games against Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen on the outside Court 18. The 23-year-old wildcard went on to win 5-7 7-6(3) 6-3 6-3.
In a courtside interview, a delighted Fery said he might have felt more nervous had he realised royalty was in the house.
The princess later switched to Court One, accompanied by double Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, where Katie Swan was battling 26th seed Madison Keys of the United States.
The princess, who is an enthusiastic tennis fan and patron of the All England Club, earlier talked to people who had been queuing since the early hours to enter the grounds and chatted to workers in the ticket office.
Fery was one of four Britons in action on Thursday, alongside Swan, Jacob Fearnley and Jan Choinski.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in London; Editing by Alison Williams)
