Davenport, Dementieva advance

Top seed Lindsay Davenport and number four Elena Dementieva began their preparations for next week's US Open with confident second round wins at the New Haven Open on Tuesday.

Davenport, who will be seeded second in New York, eased past Czech Kveta Peschke 6-4, 6-1 while Dementieva dismissed fellow Russian Vera Douchevina 6-2, 6-4.

New world number one Maria Sharapova is the top seed for the US Open which starts in New York on Monday.

In the men's event, American James Blake gave the home crowd something to cheer about with a crushing 6-1, 6-4 victory over French doubles specialist Michael Llodra in a first round match.

Fourth seed Tommy Robredo of Spain held off a strong challenge from 18-year-old American Scoville Jenkins to win their second round encounter 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.

Back on court in her first event since she injured her back in July, Davenport began slowly against the world number 38 before slipping into gear after taking the first set.

The 29-year-old American next faces Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova, who maintained her good form this summer with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Nuria Llagostera Vives of Spain.

"I was a little nervous out there because the last time I tried to play my back wouldn't let me," said Davenport, who was runner-up at this year's Australian Open and Wimbledon championships.

"I knew I wouldn't play my best, but once I got that break at 4-4, I was able to relax and be a little more calmer.

"This is a tough tournament and then we have the US Open in a few days, so I've got to start finding my match game."

BLAKE VICTORY

Dementieva, runner-up at the French and US Opens last year, won eight straight games and then recovered from a lapse in concentration to seal an easy victory over Douchevina.

"Usually I like to win 7-6 in the third," Dementieva joked.

"So when I saw that we'd played just 35 minutes and I was a set and 4-0, I thought, that's not enough."

Dementieva will now play Anabel Medina Garrigues after the Spaniard upset Argentine Gisela Dulko 6-0, 6-7, 6-4.

The men's competition came alive under lights as world number 67 Blake delighted a raucous home crowd by continuing his run of good form with a convincing win over Llodra.

The American, who grew up in Connecticut, reached the final in Washington earlier this summer and looked full of confidence.

After ripping through the first set he broke Llodra in the 10th game of the second set to set up a second round meeting with 10th seeded Italian Filippo Volandri.

"It's been great for me to be here this week, almost at home, and to sleep in my own bed. So many of my old friends are here and that helps a lot," Blake said.

After a traumatic 2004, in which he fractured vertebrae in his neck, suffered a rare illness and lost his father, Blake has been climbing back up the rankings and knows that a good run at the US Open could lift him back inside the top 40.

"I am feeling really confident at the moment. I am going for my shots and that's a great feeling for this week and for the US Open," he said.

RUSEDSKI WITHDRAWS

Meanwhile, 15th seeded Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand squeezed past Frenchman Cyril Saulnier 7-6, 7-6 to join Robredo and another Spaniard, Feliciano Lopez, in the third round.

Earlier, ninth seed Greg Rusedski withdrew from the tournament citing fatigue.

The Briton, who reached the semi-finals of the Montreal Masters earlier this month, said he needed to rest to prepare for the final Grand Slam of the year.

He was joined on the sidelines by Russian Nadia Petrova, the fifth seed, who withdrew from the women's event because of a strained right pectoral muscle.