Toby Samuel advances to second round of the US Open

British qualifier Toby Samuel secured his first career Grand Slam main-draw victory by defeating Tomas Machac in straight sets at the US Open on Monday. The match lasted one hour and 32 minutes at Flushing Meadows. Samuel, a former University of South Carolina student, entered the tournament as a qualifier after a rapid rise from a world ranking of 1,871 in January 2025. This victory marks his entry into the top 100 of the world rankings and secures £140,000 in prize money. Since early 2025, Samuel has claimed five ATP Challenger titles and reached his first ATP Tour semi-final at the Lexus Eastbourne Open. He now faces Czech 18th seed Jiri Lehecka in the second round.