Posted Own staff 2009-10-04 04:04:30

CARA Black and Liezel Huber, looking for a storming finish to a rare season without a Grand Slam,

are through to the semi-finals of the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, Japan.The world’s top ranked women’s tennis doubles team has won five WTA Tour titles this year but not a major. The US Open last month was their last shot at a Grand Slam but they fell in the final to the Williams sister pair of Serena and Venus.

Triumph at the Toray Pan Pacific Open will cement their number one status, and Black and Huber are just two matches away from doing just that in the penultimate season tournament.

Zimbabwean Black and American Huber took just 30 minutes to seal the first set 6-2 on their way to a straight sets victory over second seeds Flavia Pennetta of Italy and the United States’ Lisa Raymond on Wednesday.

Pennetta and Raymond made a meal of the second set though, holding their serve until they were finally broken in a tie-break, Black and Huber winning 7-6(2).

In the se-finals Black and Huber will meet the winners of the clash between Australian pair Rennae Stubbs and Samantha Stosur and the team of Alisa Kleybanova (Russia) and Francesca Schiavone (Italy).

After Japan, Black and Huber head for the final Sony Ericsson WTA Tour tournament in Qatar.

The Doha Championships, which Black and Huber have won for the last two years, will take place for the second year in a row at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, Qatar, from October 27 - November 1.

 Source www.newzimbabwe.com