The outcome was unthinkable before the players, separated by more than 100 places in the rankings, walked out.
But, in terms of sets played, this was Fery’s most straightforward success on his unforgettable journey to the last four.
The Briton came through back-to-back marathon five-setters in match tie-breaks to reach this stage, having battled back from a set down to prevail in his opening two matches.
Fery had demonstrated remarkable character and resilience against former world number three Dimitrov, twice recovering from a break down in a must-win fourth set before winning in just under four hours.
This was a different challenge entirely. While Fery could take confidence from a previous win over Cobolli at this year’s Australian Open, his opponent had struggled physically with stomach issues on that occasion.
But Fery proceeded to punish Cobolli’s inconsistency in their latest meeting by claiming both of his break-point opportunities in the first two sets, before racing to the finish line on the back of a superb tie-break.
Cobolli, who allowed the boisterous crowd to affect him in key moments, produced 41 unforced errors as his challenge quickly unravelled – and Fery was always there to capitalise.
The home favourite, who had his audience engaged from the start with his intent, hit 27 winners and remained solid from the back of the court, registering just 15 unforced errors.
Fery moved to Wimbledon when he was young, with his visits to watch the sport’s biggest stars at the iconic venue fostering his drive to one day make it as a professional.
Now he is living out his dreams as his fairytale story continues to gather momentum.
Tennis is in his blood too.
His mother, Olivia, was a professional tennis player – and he showed promise on grass earlier this season by reaching the quarter-finals at Queen’s.
But this is all unchartered territory for Fery, who delayed his transition to the ATP Tour to pursue a degree in science, technology and society at Stanford University.
His progress on the tour was slowed by injuries – including the bone bruising on his arm which hampered him for 18 months and left him experiencing “doubts and dark moments”.
But, able to play more consistently since overcoming that issue he reached the second round at Wimbledon last year and at January’s Australian Open.
Nothing could have prepared him for what has unfolded at his home Grand Slam this time around – but he will once again be backed passionately as he eyes another giant-killing against second seed, and German world number three, Zverev.
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