[1][2] Solvès arrived on the scene in 1993, making the quarterfinals in Munich and Gstaad.

[3] He defeated some good players in both tournaments, defeating world number 19 Henrik Holm at Munich and managing a win over Wally Masur in Gstaad.

[3] In 1997 he made the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Open and was also a semi-finalist in Chennai that year.

His first win was at the French Open in 1996, when he defeated Marcos Ondruska in a 285-minute marathon, which ended at 9–7 in the fifth set.

[3] He reached the second round again in the French Open two years later, beating American Richey Reneberg, once more in a five-set match, which saw 14 games played in the final set.