Harare — THE US Open tennis tournament enters its second week today with top Zimbabwean female player Cara Black still in the running for both the women's doubles and the mixed doubles titles.

Black is playing with Russia's Anastasia Rodionova in the women's doubles and India's Leander Paes in the mixed doubles at the fourth and final Grand Slam of the year at Flushing Meadows in New York.

And Black has managed to jump the first hurdle of both the women's doubles and mixed doubles competitions at the US Open.

She first made it into the second round of the mixed doubles on Friday with top Indian male player Paes.

Black and Paes, who are seeded second in the mixed doubles, pulled through to the second round at the expense of the Czech Republic pair of Lucie Hradecka and Frantisek Cermak who they beat in straight sets 6-4, 7-5 in the opening round, according to reports from Flushing Meadows.

Saturday night saw Black back on the courts playing in the women's doubles second round with her Russian partner Rodionova.

Black and Rodionova, who are seeded ninth, were facing unseeded opponents -- Russia's Alla Kudryavtseva and Darya Kustova of Belarus.

And the Zimbabwean-Russian combo wasted no time in dismissing their opponents 6-4, 6-1 in less than hour.

In the first round, Black and Rodionova accounted for the unseeded pair of Italian Alberta Brianti and Urszula Radwasnka of Poland 6-2, 6-3.

Black and Rodionova were initially drawn to play Victoria Azarenka and Dinara Safina in the first round of the women's doubles at this year's US Open. But Azarenka and her partner Safina pulled out of the 2010 US Open women's doubles competition, one day after Azarenka collapsed on the court.

The 21-year old and 10th-seeded Azarenka had to stop playing after she suddenly staggered and fell down on Wednesday during her second-round singles match.

It was a shock to everybody in the stadium. She was then put in a wheelchair and admitted to a hospital where tests indicated a mild concussion. Azarenka explained that she had banged her head while warming up in the gym prior to the match.

In the third round of the women's doubles, Black and Rodionova will this week face the unseeded German pair of Julia Goerges and Annalena Groenfield.

At last year's US Open, Black reached both the women's doubles and mixed doubles finals. She first fought all the way to the women's doubles final with American Liezel Huber but they lost to the powerful Williams sisters Serena and Venus 6-2, 6-2.

Black and India's Paes also failed to defend their mixed doubles title at last year's US Open where they lost in the final to Americans Carly Gullickson and Travis Parrot, who beat them 6-2, 6-4. Black and Paes have since redeemed themselves this year by winning the mixed doubles titles at the Australian Open in January and Wimbledon in July.