Emma Raducanu backed up her maiden WTA Tour win with a straightforward victory over Ana Bogdan to reach the quarter-finals at the Transylvania Open.
The British No 1, who battled past Polona Hercog in three sets in her opening match, stepped up a level against Bogdan and began showing glimpses of the form that swept her to the US Open title last month. An early break in the opening set put Raducanu firmly in the driving seat in Cluj.
Bogdan is a dangerous opponent despite her lowly ranking of 106, but the Romanian was being consistently outmanoeuvred by the 18-year-old from Kent. Raducanu broke again at the start of the second and although Bogdan retrieved it, the Briton hit straight back to win 6-3, 6-4.
Another victory means Raducanu has to delay a visit to see her grandmother. Raducanu’s father, who is travelling with his daughter this week, is Romanian and the plan is to go and visit his family in Bucharest after her run at the tournament ends.
Romania has taken Raducanu to its heart this week, and she said in her on-court interview: “It was so good to play a Romanian here. There are no fans, unfortunately, but there are all the volunteers who make this tournament possible and I loved playing with some noise again, against Ana who is a great opponent.
“I think it’s taking me some time to find my feet still. I’m learning from every match I play and I don’t think I’m the finished product yet, but I’m learning and I’m loving my time at this tournament.”
Raducanu will face another teenager, the 19-year-old Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk, in the last eight.
Tumaini Carayol’s match report from Cluj to follow