Swiatek, Badosa through to 4th round at Miami Open

Paula Badosa was midway through an on-court interview after another victory at the Miami Open when a thought crossed her mind.

And given where she is right now, it made a lot of sense.

"Why am I speaking English?" she asked. "I think there's much more Spanish people than English here."

It is Badosa's deepest run at Miami, where there were more than a few fans waving Spanish flags in her honour.

"Muchas gracias," she said.

Badosa came to Miami — the tournament was played on nearby Key Biscayne then — for the first time in 2015 and made it to the third round while being ranked 419th in the world. She was 222nd when she returned in 2016, then 316th a year later, 130th in 2019 and 71st when she arrived in Miami last year.

Depending on how the rest of this tournament goes, Badosa might be poised to climb to No. 2 behind Swiatek when Miami ends. She is a full-fledged star now, even getting the celebrity treatment and her own personalized jersey when she headed to a Miami Heat game a few miles down the road last week.

"I'm really happy about the performance," Badosa said.

Setting up strikes ⚡<a href="https://twitter.com/paulabadosa?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@paulabadosa</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MiamiOpen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MiamiOpen</a> <a href="https://t.co/qgAWk8XY3I">pic.twitter.com/qgAWk8XY3I</a>

Badosa will meet unseeded Linda Fruhvirtova in the fourth round, after the 16-year-old from the Czech Republic got past three-time Miami Open winner and 12th-seeded Victoria Azarenka. Fruhvirtova led 6-2, 3-0 when Azarenka — the only past Miami winner who was left in the draw — retired.

"This is what I've always dreamed of," said Fruhvirtova, who entered Miami ranked 279th and will likely climb about