PARIS — British tennis player Toby Samuel qualified for his first Grand Slam main draw at the 2026 French Open after coming through three rounds of qualifying in Paris. He sealed his place by battling back from a set down to defeat Gonzalo Bueno 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 in the final qualifying round.

Samuel had earlier defeated American Martin Damm Jr, ranked 112th and seeded seventh in qualifying, in the first round, before knocking out former world number seven David Goffin on Wednesday. He will learn his first-round opponent when the qualifiers are placed into the draw on Friday.

"Getting through to the main draw is a dream come true. It's huge validation for all the work I've put in," Samuel said. "Playing in the main draw you're surrounded by all the top guys, and that's where I want to be."

Samuel had never contested a singles match on the ATP Tour or at a Grand Slam prior to 2026. He missed much of the 2024 season after suffering bone bruising in his right arm, and slipped to almost 2,000 in the world rankings during his injury layoff. Twelve months prior to May 2026, he was ranked outside the world's top 1,300 players.

Since the start of 2025, he has risen by 1,708 places to number 159 in the world rankings, climbing more places than any other player on the men's tour in 2025. He won 36 of 39 matches on the ATP Challenger Tour at the end of 2025, and claimed back-to-back Challenger titles in March 2026 as part of a 15-match winning streak. In the past year he has won 67 of his 80 matches.

Reaching the Roland Garros main draw boosted his career prize money total of £118,300 by 63.5%, with Samuel guaranteed to receive at least £75,200 even if he loses his first-round match. He will receive at least £166,000 if he loses in the first round of the main draw.

"It's a massive reward for me, my whole team and family just to watch me at this event," Samuel said. He has his own hotel room at Roland Garros in 2026 instead of sharing with his coach. "That is probably the secret of why I've done well," he joked.

Samuel grew up in Winchester and started playing tennis at age three at his local club in Bournemouth. He reached the Wimbledon boys' doubles semi-finals in 2019 alongside Arthur Fery.