Tennis BETTING PREVIEW - Alex De Minaur vs Toby Samuel

Tennis

2026-05-25 - Alex De Minaur vs Toby Samuel

A Sports Betting Preview by FirstDown

Alex De Minaur vs Toby Samuel
Tennis : French Open First Round
Monday 25th May 2026 - Scheduled 11am
10am (British Time)

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Preview

Untimely injuries can have a big impact on any athlete in any sport and that has certainly held back Toby Samuel.

The 23 year old British player has returned to the Tour in 2025, but he has mainly been operating at a lower level before taking part and winning three Qualifiers to earn a spot in the French Open main draw. This is the first time Toby Samuel has been able to do this and he has a win over David Goffin in the Qualifiers, which has to be hugely respected, but all of this is going to feel like a new experience and the World Number 159 is operating at a career high mark.

The wins in the Qualifiers will have done Toby Samuel the world of good, but he had lost his previous three clay court matches prior to the run here in Paris.

Now he has to take on a top ten Seeded player in Alex De Minaur, although one that has not played nearly as well on the clay courts in 2026 compared with the last couple of years on the surface.

Alex De Minaur can take some belief from the fact he reached the Semi Final in Hamburg last week, but his numbers have been down across both serve and return in 2026 compared with the lsat couple of years. The manner of the Second Round defeat at the French Open twelve months ago may have dented the confidence, but the Australian is right to be set as a strong favourite and you have to believe the best of five set format gives him a chance to warm into the task at hand.

The added edge comes from the experience the World Number 9 has put together in his time on the Tour compared with Toby Samuel who has never played a top 100 Ranked opponent before on any surface.

Having nothing to lose could make Toby Samuel dangerous, but this is a long format and eventually you have to believe Alex De Minaur will show his superior experience to break down and overwhelm the young Qualifier who will be hoping to build on this run in Paris.

Prediction

Lay the games with the higher Ranked player.

The Pick :

Alex De Minaur 3-0 Toby Samuel

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back Alex De Minaur - 7.5 Games at 1.83 with Bet365