Emma Raducanu beat Czech wonderkid Linda Noskova in Stuttgart to set up a quarter-final showdown with the queen of clay: world No 1 Iga Swiatek.
Raducanu is unbeaten on the red dirt this season and has won four matches in a row for the first time since her US Open title in 2021.
‘I am not too surprised as I have been working really hard and I knew it was only a matter of time,’ said the 21-year-old after her 6-0, 7-5 win.
‘I don’t think this was my best, I still have a long way to go.’
Noskova is world No 31 at the age of just 19 but she was outrun and outmanoeuvred.
Emma Raducanu has won four matches in a row for first time since her US Open title in 2021
Raducanu’s new-found clay expertise will face the acid test against Swiatek.
They met at the same stage in Stuttgart in 2022, Raducanu losing 6-4, 6-4. Any improvement on that would be a fine result.
In Barcelona, Cam Norrie beat Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-3. He will play Argentina’s Tomas Etcheverry in the quarter-finals.