Arthur Fery fell short of securing his maiden ATP Tour trophy on Saturday, falling in straight sets to Peru's Ignacio Buse at the Winston-Salem Open. The British player was unable to solve his opponent during the North Carolina final, dropping the contest with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-2. Despite the championship match disappointment, the 24-year-old made history as the first player from his country to reach the final of the ATP 250 tournament.

The opening stages of the match were tightly contested before Buse managed to seize momentum late in the first set. The Peruvian competitor broke serve to love to claim a 5-3 advantage and quickly established a commanding lead by securing a double break in the second. Although Fery managed to claw back one of those service breaks, Buse responded by winning three consecutive games to clinch the championship.

For the 22-year-old Buse, the triumph in North Carolina makes him the youngest champion in the history of the tournament. It adds to an impressive season for the South American, who previously captured an ATP 500 crown in Hamburg earlier in the year.

The tournament run nevertheless marks another milestone in a rapid ascent for Fery, who captured public attention in July by reaching the semi-finals at Wimbledon. Prior to his remarkable performance at the All England Club, he sat outside the top 100 in the global rankings. His performance at the Winston-Salem event will push him to number 33 in the world, allowing him to surpass Cameron Norrie as the top-ranked British male player when the new rankings are released.

Fery will have little time to dwell on the loss as he immediately travels to New York for the final major championship of the tennis season. The US Open begins on Sunday, and Fery is set to make his main draw debut at Flushing Meadows against Italian 13th seed Lorenzo Musetti.

He is one of nine competitors representing Great Britain in the main draws at the tournament. Norrie and Jan Choinski join him directly in the men's bracket alongside qualifiers Toby Samuel and Harry Wendelken, and lucky loser Jacob Fearnley. The British contingent in the women's tournament features Katie Boulter alongside qualifiers Fran Jones and Harriet Dart, while prominent compatriots Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu are absent from the entry lists due to injuries.

Reporting based on coverage first published by BBC Sport. Read the original report at BBC Sport.